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THE 


BOOK  OF  AMERICAN  INTERIORS. 


THE 

* 

BOOK 

OF 

American  Interiors 

PREPARED  BY 

CHARLES  WYLLYS  ELLIOTT 

FROM  EXISTING  HOUSES 

WITH 

Preliminary  Essays  and  Letterpress  Descriptions 

Illustrate  in  Jcliotype 


BOSTON 
JAMES  R.  OSGOOD  AND  COMPANY 

Late  Ticknor  &  Fields,  and  Fields,  Osgood,  &  Co. 


Copyright,  1875. 
Br  JAMES  R.  OSGOOD  &  CO. 


TO  THE  READER. 


r^-SS^jSrO  ^e  cru^c  Perfecti°n  is  easy  ;  to  the  work- 
JJ  man  it  is  difficult :  is  it  not  impossible  ? 

Being  workmen,  we  have  done  what  we 


could  with  the  material  at  hand.  It  is  a 
matter  of  regret  that  we  live  in  such  a  large  country ;  that 
the  "magnificent  distances"  hinder  us  from  seeing  and  study- 
ing the  good  examples  of  household  art  to  be  found  in 
Baltimore  and  New  Orleans  and  San  Francisco  and  Chicago 
and  Philadelphia  and  elsewhere.  But  in  the  progress  of 
time  we  trust  that  these  fine  interiors  may  open  their  doors 
to  us,  and  that  we  may  glean  a  fruitful  harvest. 

There  is  much  to  see  in  this  new  land  of  ours,  much  to 
study,  much  to  enjoy ;  and  most  fortunate  it  is  that  we  have 
among  our  keen  and  appreciative  people  so  many  whose  de- 
sires now  lead  them  onward  into  the  enchanted  region  where 
Art  will  beautify  the  commonplaces  of  life  and  make  home 
the  best. 

In  making  the  sketches  I  have  been  much  assisted  by  the 
firm  pencil  of  Mr.  H.  M.  Stephenson,  an  architect  whose  eye 
seizes  and  whose  hand  records  the  nicest  points. 


Q  TO  THE  READER. 

Something  has  been  done  to  make  the  drawings  more  ap- 
preciable by  short  descriptions.  But  we  lack  the  magic  of 
color,  and  lose  much.  The  artistic  sense,  however,  will  fill 
the  gaps  where  we  fail. 

What  we  all  need  is  good  models, —  we  wish  to  know 
what  has  been  done ;  for  it  helps  us  to  know  what  we  wish  to 
do.  In  this  collection  I  venture  to  hope  that  the  thousands 
who  now  aim  to  make  the  inside  of  their  houses  charming 
will  find  many  hints  and  suggestions  which  will  be  of  use ; 
and  that  the  revolt  from  the  vulgar,  the  meretricious,  and 
the  commonplace,  which  have  long  afflicted  us,  will  resolve 
itself  into  a  social  government,  when,  in  every  house,  the 
Beautiful  married  to  the  Useful  shall  make  life  truer,  finer, 
happier. 

To  this  end  I  work,  and  I  ask  your  help.  No  one  can  do 
much,  but  together  we  may  do  all. 

CHARLES  W?  ELLIOTT. 

The  Household  Art  Rooms,  Boston, 
November,  1875. 


CONTENTS. 


I. 

Pagb 

THE  HOME  11 


II. 

THE  DINING-ROOM  ....   With  Illustrations  ...  15 


III. 

THE  LIBRARY  With  Illustrations  .      .  .47 


IV. 


AMERICAN  INTERIORS 


With  Heliotype  Illustrations  67 


LIST  OF  INTERIORS. 


1.  LIBRARY.   .  . 

2.  DINING-ROOM 

3.  LIBRARY     .  . 

4.  LIBRARY.   .  . 

5.  DINING-ROOM 

6.  DINING-ROOM 

7.  GREAT  HALL. 

8.  LIBRARY  .   .  . 

9.  DINING-ROOM 

10.  CHINA-ROOM  . 

11.  LIBRARY.   .  . 


Henry  W.  Longfellow, 

Cambridge,  Mass. 

Dr.  James  R.  Chad  wick, 
Boston,  Mass. 

Donald  G.  Mitchell, 

West  Haven,  Conn. 

Dr.  Theo.  F.  Breck,.  . 

Springfield,  Mass. 

Dr.  Theo.  F.  Breck,  .  . 

Springfield,  Mass. 


Architects'or  Designees,    to  face  Page 

(House  of  the  time  preceding  the  American  69 
Revolution.) 

.    Messrs.  Weston  and  Rand    .  73 


Donald  G.  Mitchell 


Charles  Wyllts  Elliott 


77 


81 


Charles  Wyllys  Elliott  .    .  85 


George  Ward  Nichols,  87 

Cincinnati,  0. 


Major  J.  L.  Rathbone, 

Memlo  Park,  Cal. 


89 


George  B.  Chase,  Messrs.  Ware  and  Van  Brunt  91 

Boston,  Mass. 


J.  V.  L.  Prttyn, 

Albany,  N.  Y. 


Mrs.  Pruyn  97 

 99 


J.  V.  L.  Pruyn  Mrs.  Prdyn 

Albany,  N.  Y. 


William  Cullen  Bryant,  103 

Roslyn,  Long  Island. 


12.  STUDY 


Harvard  College, 

Cambridge,  Mass. 


Charles  Wyllys  Elliott.    .  107 


13. 


DINING-ROOM 


James  Lee,  Jr. 
Boston,  Mass. 


Messrs.  Emerson  and  Fehmer  109 


X 


LIST  OF  INTERIORS. 


14.    DRAWING-ROOM   Prof.  Fairman  Rogers, 

Newport,  R.  I. 


Messrs.  Furness  and  Hewitt  ; 
Messrs.  Hazard  .113 


15.  LIBRARY 


16.  DINING-ROOM 


John  A.  Burn  ham,  Jr.,  . 

Boston,  Mass. 

John  A.  Burnham,  Jr.,  . 

Boston,  Mass. 


Charles  Wyllys  Elliott.  .  .115 
Charles  Wyllys  Elliott.    .  .117 


17.  DINING-ROOM 


George  James  Messrs.  Sturgis  and  Brigham    .  119 

Nahant,  Mass. 


18.    HALL  Charles  S.  Sargent,  . 

Brookline,  Mass. 


Messrs.  Sturgis  and  Brigham    .  123 


19.  DINING-ROOM 


Charles  A.  Cummings,   .    .    Messrs.  Cummings  and  Sears   .  125 

Boston,  Mass. 


20.  DINING-ROOM 


George  W.  Wales, 

Boston,  Mass. 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wales 


127 


21.  HALL 


Francis  Peabody, 

Danvers,  Mass. 


22.    MEMORIAL  HALL  Harvard  College, 

Cambridge,  Mass. 


(Time  preceding  the  American  Revolution. )  129 
Messrs.  Ware  and  Van  Brunt   .  131 


HE  HOME. 


THE  HOME. 


Y  belief  is  that  nothing  will  make  man  or  woman 
better,  or  well,  or  even  safe,  except  their  own 
home. 

We  have  tried  all  sorts  of  panaceas,  —  free-trade, 
free-press,   free-schools,  free  and  ignorant  suffrage: 
they  avail  not.    Vice,  crime,  folly,  and  discontent  riot  abroad. 

Whenever  a  man's  home  becomes  to  him  the  most  attractive 
place  on  earth,  he  will  not  leave  it  to  seek  either  the  grog-shop, 
the  gambling-room,  or  the  "ring." 

Whenever  a  woman's  house  shall  be  her  palace,  her  pride,  her 
delight,  she  will  not  be  a  victim  of  ennui,  or  vanity,  or  ambition, 
or  discontent. 

Who  doubts  this?    None, — not  one. 

For  all,  rich  and  poor  alike,  this  is  true.  When  we  believe  it 
and  practise  it,  civilized  life  will  become  a  satisfaction,  and  happi- 
ness in  some  degree  will  seem  possible  on  earth. 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Fro.  Page 

1.  OLD  ENGLISH  HALL   22 

2.  OLD  ITALIAN  DINNER-TABLE   29 

3.  EAELY  ITALIAN  KITCHEN   33 

4.  BOUEGEOIS  AT  DINNEE   34 

5.  THE  SWINE-KEEPEE   34 

6.  AN  OLD  KITCHEN   35 

7.  8.    EAELY  ENGLISH  KITCHENS   35 

9-12.    EAELY  ENGLISH  CHAIES  37,38 

13,  14.    ANTIQUE  SETTLES   39 

15.  GEEAT  CHEST   40 

16.  VENETIAN  CHAIE   41 

17.  CHAIE  OF  CROMWELL'S  TIME   43 

18.  GOVEENOE  CAEVEE'S  CHAIE   45 


I 


THE  DINING-EOOM. 


^'^Sfe^Kj'N  all  ages  men  have  lived  who,  in  glorifying  the  soul, 
t  contemned  and  despised  the  body.    It  has  been  a  fatal 
mistake,  as  fatal  as  to  contemn  and  despise  the  soul 
while  magnifying  the  bod}'.    Let  us  do  neither :  let  us 
s»2jk&  now  help  to  restore  the  body,  so  that  it  shall  be  what 
St.  Paul  called  it,  a  "  temple  of  the  Holy  Spirit." 

It  is  the  first  and  greatest  duty  of  all  men  and  women  to  be  well, 
that  so  they  may  become  beautiful ;  for  so  were  Adam  and  Eve.  So 
we  cannot  be,  nor  our  children  after  us,  if  we  are  feeble  and  hideous. 
Such  our  children  will  be  if  we  are  in  that  likeness.  And  what  a 
legacy  to  give  them,  weakness  instead  of  strength,  despondency  in 
place  of  hope,  ugliness  instead  of  beauty  !  What  wretched  man  or 
woman  will  do  this  ? 

To  insure  good  health,  fine  strength,  and  gracious  beauty,  we  must 
eat  well  and  drink  well,  and  we  must  teach  our  children  to  do  like- 
wise. Dyspepsia  now  rides  riotous ;  tobacco  and  whiskey  attack  all 
nerves ;  candy  and  cake  are  the  food  of  children ;  health,  strength, 
and  beauty  fly  away  in  disgust.  What  results  ?  Despondency, 
irritability,  incompatibility  between  the  sexes,  wretchedness,  hope- 
lessness, cowardice.    Who  admires  this  picture? 

In  view  of  these  things,  we  cannot  err  if  we  glorify  the  dining- 
room,  and  the  food  we  eat  in  it.  Let  us  do  so.  The  history  of  the 
dinner  may  be  made  the  history  of  man  ;  for  all  life  centres  there, 
though  I  will  not  here  write  such  a  history. 


20 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


We  are  wise,  —  possibly  %  But  were  not  those  ancients  we  affect 
to  despise  also  wise,  —  wiser  %  Listen  to  what  Herodotus  said  about 
those  Egyptians  whom  we  seem  to  know  as  persecutors  of  the  He- 
brews :  — 

"  The  Egyptians  are,  I  believe,  next  to  the  Lybians,  the  healthiest 

people  in  the  world  They  are  persuaded  that  every  disease  to 

which  men  are  liable  is  caused  by  the  substances  whereon  they  feed 

(mark  that !)  They  live  on  bread  made  of  spelt  Their 

drink  is  beer  made  from  barley  Many  fish  they  eat  raw,  either 

salted,  or  dried  in  the  sun.  Quails,  also  ducks  and  small  birds,  they 
eat  uncooked,  merely  first  salting  them.  All  other  birds  and  fishes, 
excepting  those  set  apart  as  sacred,  are  eaten  either  roasted  or 
boiled." 

No  care  for  the  body  was  too  great.  It  was  the  home  of  the  spirit, 
and  thus  sacred.  Hence  came  the  custom  of  embalming  the  body, 
that  it  might  be  free  from  corruption,  ready  for  the  repossession  of 
the  soul. 

Those  old  heathens  may  teach  even  us !  We  well  know  that 
the  arts  of  living  had  reached  great  excellence  with  the  ancients,  — 
among  the  Persians,  Chaldeans,  Egyptians,  Greeks.  European  na- 
tions seem  not  to  have  learned  much  from  them  ;  and  especially 
the  Germanic  races,  from  which  Ave  come.  These  grew  up  out  of 
barbarism  and  brutality  in  their  own  way,  slowly,  through  the  cen- 
turies ;  until  the  dining-room  has  become  with  us  what  our  illustra- 
trations  show  it  to  be. 

Good  taste  and  good  sense  are  now  combined  to  make  our  homes 
what  they  should  be  and  may  be,  fit  tabernacles  for  the  souls  and 
bodies  of  men.  I  say  souls  advisedly;  for  no  home  and  no  room 
is  or  can  be  what  it  ought  to  be,  unless  it  satisfies  the  soul,  or  that 
part  of  it  we  call  the  aesthetic  sense.  Whoever  is  content  with  a 
merely  soft  seat,  and  anything  sufficient  to  fill  his  belly,  is  but  a 
little  above  the  brute. 

The  chair  must  be  made  with  fine  lines,  and  a  keen  perception  of 
the  beautiful ;  the  meat  must  be  delicately  cooked,  and  served  on 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


21 


porcelaine  or  faience,  which  is  moulded  and  decorated  by  an  artist, 
or  we  will  not  be  content ;  we  shall  not  have  done  our  best.  The 
examples  we  give  will  help  towards  this  end  :  if  not  perfect  in  them- 
selves, they  are  on  that  road,  and  point  the  way  to  perfection.  These 
interiors  are  not  fancy  pictures,  but  are  in  real  use,  and  have  grown 
out  of  that  demand  for  the  good,  the  true,  and  the  beautiful  which, 
in  the  way  of  household  art,  marks  the  present  time. 

We  cannot  in  these  pages  give  an  elaborate  account  of  the  ways 
and  doings  of  our  ancestors, — how  the  dining-room  has  grown  up 
—  but  a  short  sketch  may  be  interesting  to  many. 

Far  back  among  our  Saxon  ancestors  in  England  we  find  that 
the  houses  were  mostly  of  wood,  and  of  one  story.  Furniture  was 
of  the  rudest  kinds,  for  Art  had  not  awakened.  A  few  benches 
and  boards  sufficed  for  the  dining-room.  Cooking  was  often  done 
in  the  open  air,  before  huge  fires,  where  the  wolf,  the  boar,  and  the 
wild  ox  were  roasted  whole.  At  their  feasts  was  plenty,  profusion, 
but  not  taste.  Drinking  is  the  excitement  of  all  coarse  lives,  and 
in  the  "Saxon  and  all  the  Northern  races  the  feast  ran  into  riot  and 
ended  in  drunkenness. 

After  the  Norman  conquest  the  stone  castle  became  the  leading 
fact  of  English  feudal  life.  This  castle,  however,  was  in  no  sense 
a  home,  —  such  did  not  then  exist ;  the  castle  was  for  defence,  a 
fortress ;  and  social  life  was  conformed  to  it.  Around  the  castle 
gathered  the  followers,  the  dependants,  the  serfs  of  the  baron.  In 
the  castle  they  found  shelter,  and  upon  the  lord  they  depended ; 
the  lands  and  houses  and  crops  were  his,  and  these  were  dispensed 
by  him  according  to  his  pleasure  or  his  wisdom.  Up  to  this  time, 
then,  no  such  thing  as  domestic  life  or  household  art  could  be  said 
to  exist  in  England. 

Architecture,  however,  found  expression  both  upon  the  exteriors 
and  the  interiors,  but  mostly  upon  the  former,  of  those  fine  old 
structures,  —  some  of  which  still  stand,  monuments  to  mark  the 
growth  of  English  society. 

The  great  hall  was  the  principal  room  of  all  the  baronial 


22  THE  BINING-R  0  OM. 

houses  both  in  England  and  France.  In  this  hall  were  held  the 
banquets,  the  dances,  the  mimes,  the  festivals ;  and  here  the  lord 
dined  at  the  head  of  great  tables  along  which  sat  his  fighting  men, 
and  oftentimes  the  serfs  or  workmen  of  the  surrounding  lands.  We 
give  here  a  representation  of  one  of  these  halls  filled  with  guests, 

Fig.  1. 


•-r  J.iLSc 


from  an  old  manuscript,  as  given  by  Hudson  Turner.  It  shows  the 
dais  upon  which  sit  the  lords  and  ladies ;  at  the  end  is  seen  the 
plate  cupboard  or  sideboard;  on  the  other  side  are  the  minstrels  in 
their  gallery;  and  on  the  floor  among  the  guests,  a  conspicuous 
person,  is  seen  the  jester,  or  fool. 

From  a  French  book,  printed  in  1732,*  we  learn  something  of  the 

*  Les  Contes  et  Discours  d'Eutrapol.    Par  Noel  du  Fail.  1732. 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


23 


furnishings  of  a  later  period,  as  well  as  the  manners  of  the  hall  or 
great  room  in  France,  —  not  unlike  what  prevailed  in  England :  — 

"There  Avere  stag's  antlers  for  hanging  the  hats  and  caps  upon, 
and  to  which  were  attached  the  hunting-horns  and  the  coupling- 
cords  of  the  dogs,  as  also  the  rosaries  for  the  use  of  the  common 
people.  Upon  the  1  dresser,'  or  sideboard,  was  placed  the  translation 
of  the  Bible  as  authorized  by  Charles  V.,  of  France,  a  hundred  years 
previously,  besides  various  'romance'  books  of  the  period.  Behind 
the  great  door  were  the  pegs  to  hang  the  game  upon.  Upon  the 
boarding  at  the  end  of  the  hall  and  over  the  chimney  were  hung 
weapons  both  offensive  and  defensive,  while  on  one  side  were  the 
nets  and  other  instruments  connected  with  hunting.  It  is  curious  to 
notice,  too,  that  beneath  the  large  bench,  which  was  three  feet  wide, 
was  strewed  fresh  straw  for  the  hounds  to  lie  upon,  that  they  might 
be  close  to  their  master;  while  for  strangers  and  guests  two  good 
chambers  were  provided  in  addition,  and  in  the  fireplace  layers  of 
green  and  dry  fagots,  by  which  arrangement  the  fire  burned  more 
slowly." 

In  the  middle  of  the  hall  great  fires  diffused  a  tempered  heat,  and 
the  smoke  found  its  way  through  openings  in  the  roof  called  louvres. 

The  food  included  the  flesh  of  the  horse  as  well  as  other  animals, 
bread,  sour  fruits,  butter  and  cheese,  a  few  vegetables,  among  which 
are  mentioned  pease,  beans,  and  kale.  Cabbages  and  onions  were 
sometimes  brought  from  Holland,  and  were  a  luxury.  Whales  and 
porpoises  were  eaten  and  were  sought  for.  Down  to  the  time  of 
Queen  Elizabeth,  porpoise-flesh  is  included  in  the  purchases  for  her 
table. 

With  the  Crusaders  came  from  the  East  sugar  and  some  spices, 
such  as  cinnamon  and  frankincense ;  but  prices  were  high ;  in  the 
thirteenth  century  sugar  sold  for  as  much  as  thirty  shillings  of  pres- 
ent money  a  pound. 

It  was  a  peculiarity  of  the  early  time  that  the  nobles  dined  early, 
the  meaner  people  later ;  as,  for  example,  in  Queen  Elizabeth's  time 
the  gentry  dined  at  eleven,  the  merchants  at  twelve  o'clock,  —  quite 
the  opposite  of  to-day.  Dinner  and  supper  were  the  two  meals  of 
the  day. 


24 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


11  In  the  fourteenth  century  the  usual  time  of  dining-  was  ten  or 
eleven.  When  the  king  of  France  arrived  at  Airaines  in  pursuit  of 
Edward  the  Third  it  was  noon,  but  he  found  that  the  king  of  England 
had  quitted  the  place  about  ten  o'clock  that  morning.  The  French 
found  there  provisions  of  all  sorts,  meat  on  the  spits,  bread  and  pastry 
in  the  ovens,  wine  in  barrels,  and  even  some  tables  ready  spread  for 
dinner ;  for  the  English  had  left  in  great  haste.  When  the  king  of 
France  entertained  Richard  II.  on  his  marriage,  the  guests  arrived  at 
eleven  o'clock,  and  they  found  the  tables  already  spread  for  dinner. 
Our  ancestors  seldom  partook  of  more  than  two  meals  a  day,  dinner 
and  supper ;  the  hour  at  which  they  supped  was  five  in  the  afternoon. 

"This  had  long  been  the  accustomed  time  for  the  evening  meal. 
When  Richard  II.  went  to  arrest  the  Duke  of  Gloster  at  Pleshy  Castle, 
he  arrived  at  about  five  o'clock.  The  Duke  had  already  supped,  for 
he  was  very  temperate  in  his  diet,  and  never  sat  long  at  dinner  or 
supper.  The  table  was  covered  with  a  white  cloth.  In  Richard  Cceur 
de  Lion  we  read, 

'Whenne  they  hackle  eten  the  cloth  was  folde.' 

And  again, 

'After  mete  the  cloth  was  drawe.' 
In  Syr  Eglamour  we  are  told  that 

'Ryche  metys  forth  they  brodcte, 
The  raynyish  wyn  forgat  they  nogt, 
Whyte  clothes  sone  they  spradde.' 

But  the  tablecloths  were  sometimes  of  silk.  In  the  romance  of  Rich- 
ard Cceur  de  Lion  we  read  that  on  the  dining-table 

'Clothe  of  sylk  thereon  was  sprad.'"  * 

In  the  construction  and  arrangement  of  the  "  dressoir,"  or  buffet, 
we  see  some  beginnings  of  art,  but  very  rude.  Silver  cups  were 
used,  and  spoons  were  made  of  bone,  wood,  and  silver.  Dishes 
were  of  wood  (tre)  and  of  pewter.  Guests  often  brought  their  own 
knives.  Forks  are  mentioned  as  early  as  the  eleventh  century,  but 
were  not  much  in  use  until  the  sixteenth.    The  fingers  were  used  in 


*  Turner's  Domestic  Architecture. 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


25 


their  place  ;  and  at  first  the  fork  was  looked  upon  as  a  piece  of 
affectation  and  foppery.  The  knight  and  the  lady  ate  with  their 
fingers  from  the  same  plate,  and  drank  healths  from  the  same  cup. 
This  was  rude,  but  friendly. 

In  an  inventory  of  the  college  at  Bishop's  Auckland,  we  find :  — 

I.  almery  (cupboard). 

I.  borde  with  trests  (trestles). 

I.  choppyng  knyfe. 

I.  ymage  of  or  Ladye. 
III.  mete  bords,  remouable. 
III.  paire  tresles. 
IIII.  formys  (forms). 

I.  cobbord. 

I.  hangyng  of  grene  say  (serge). 
III.  old  latyne  basyngs. 
II.  ewers  to  ye  same. 
X.  old  standis  of  tre  (wood). 

The  almery  took  its  name  from  the  cupboard,  where  was  stored 
the  remains  of  the  feast,  which  Avere  to  be  given  away  as  alms  for 
the  poor. 

The  salt-cellar  was  an  important  article  for  the  table.  We  find 
one  described  as  early  as  1380  as  made  in  the  shape  of  a  dog. 
Castles,  wagons,  and  other  devices  were  used.  The  salt  was  often 
taken  from  it  with  ceremony,  by  throwing  a  pinch  over  the  left 
shoulder,  or  by  saying  a  small  blessing.  "  Below  the  salt,"  has  come 
to  be  a  proverb.  It  grew  out  of  the  fact  that  below  the  place  on  the 
table  where  the  great  salt-cellar  stood  the  guests  were  common  or 
mean  ;  above,  noble.  Many  such  customs  prevailed  which  we  cannot 
enumerate. 

Splendor  prevailed  at  an  early  date,  before  the  home  existed ;  but 
Art  had  little  to  do  at  that  time.  Turner  thus  describes  some  of  the 
decorations :  — 

"The  interior  was  richly  decorated,  even  when  the  building  itself 
was  poor.    When  Cardinal  Beaufort,  who  was  sent  as  ambassador  to 


26 


THE  DIATWG-liOOM. 


make  peace  with  France  in  1439,  arrived  in  the  marshes  of  Calais, 
there  was  a  handsome  hall  erected  there,  upwards  of  a  hundred  feet 
in  length,  and  made  to  accommodate  three  hundred  persons  at  table. 
It  contained  at  the  north  end  all  necessary  offices,  —  a  pantry,  but- 
tery, wine  and  other  cellars,  and  two  chambers,  and  at  the  south  end 
a  passage  led  into  the  kitchen.  The  hall  was  beautifully  hung  with 
crimson  tapestry.  A  short  distance  from  the  cardinal's  was  the  hall 
of  the  Duchess  of  Burgundy,  which  was  built  of  old  rotten  timber, 
and  covered  with  dirty  sails,  but  the  interior  was  richly  adorned  with 
arras. 

"  Edward  IV.  in  1480  bought  of  Piers  de  Vraulx,  of  Gascoigne, 
stuffs  to  the  amount  of  £238  15 s.  Gel,  a  sum  which,  when  compared 
with  its  value  in  modern  currency,  appears  enormous.  Henry  VII., 
however,  exceeded  him  in  his  taste  for  such  ornaments.  We  may 
take  as  examples  three  entries  from  the  wardrobe  accounts  of  that 
monarch :  — 

£        s.  d. 

'  To  a  merchant  of  Flanders  for  52  elles  of  arras,  .  .  2G5  6  8 
For  a  cloth  of  estate  47  yerds  di  xili.  the  yerd,  .  .  522  10  0 
To  Lewas  de  ffava  for  a  pece  of  gold  and  vii  peces  of 

baudekyn,     .  28G    9  0' 

These  sums  in  the  aggregate  would  be  equivalent  to  about  £  12,000 
of  our  present  currency. 

"  Towards  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century  tapestry  began  to  be 
disused,  and  its  place  supplied  by  wainscoting  or  stamped  leather. 
Wainscot  of  the  time  of  Henry  VIII.  may  generally  be  distinguished 
by  the  pattern  called  the  "linen  panel,"  being  an  exact  imitation  of 
the  folds  of  a  linen  napkin,  sometimes  with  a  representation  of  the 
fringe,  as  in  the  abbot's  house  at  Beaulieu,  Hampshire." 

Their  feasts,  too,  were  lavish,  and  rich  with  a  sort  of  barbaric 
splendor  :  — 

"  The  magnificence  of  the  feasts  of  this  period  is  a  subject  upon 
which  the  old  chroniclers  loved  to  dilate.  The  banquets  of  the  four- 
teenth century  were  pageants,  and  the  description  of  them,  read  in 
the  pages  of  history,  like  passages  from  fairy-tales.  We  may  form 
some  idea  of  the  vast  scale  upon  which  they  were  conducted,  from 
the  fact,  that  at  the  feast  of  Lionel,  Duke  of  Clarence,  son  of  Edward 
III.,  thirty  courses  were  included  in  the  bill  of  fare.    These  enter- 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


27 


tainments  were  sometimes  kept  up  until  a  late  hour,  and  were  fol- 
lowed by  masks  and  minstrelsy.  The  details  of  the  dining-table  are 
interesting-.  The  trestles  being-  brought  forward  and  the  boards 
arranged,  the  whole  was  covered  with  an  ample  cloth.  The  platters 
were  usually  of  pewter,  and,  in  houses  of  a  second  class,  of  wood ; 
these  were  sometimes  square  in  shape.  The  display  of  plate  was 
often  extensive,  and  indicated  the  increase  of  national  wealth.  Silver 
dishes,  cups,  and  salt-cellars,  wrought  in  curious  devices,  glistened 
upon  the  board,  and  the  taste  displayed  in  the  manufacture  of  these 
articles  of  plate  was  sometimes  both  chaste  and  elegant.  We  have 
in  existence  some  of  the  choicest  specimens  of  workmanship  ranging 
through  the  mediaeval  period,  which  sufficiently  testify  that  in  the 
working  of  metals  the  ingenuity  and  skill  of  the  artisans  of  bygone 
days  was  far  from  contemptible.  The  nobles  prided  themselves  upon 
their  gold  and  silver  vessels,  and  made  many  sacrifices  to  obtain 
them.  The  exchequer  might  be  empty,  but  they  dined  off  gold  and 
silver.  The  author  of  a  song,  written  in  the  time  of  Edward  II., 
hints  that  it  would  have  been  better  for  them  to  have  eaten  out  of 
wooden  vessels  and  have  paid  for  their  provisions  with  silver,  than 
to  eat  off  silver  and  pay  for  their  provisions -with  wooden  tallies  :  — 

'  Si  1c  roy  freyt  moun  consail,  tunc  vellem  laudare, 
D'argent  prendre  le  vetsel  monctamque  parare ; 
Mien  valdriet  tie  fust  manger  pro  victu  nununasdare 
Qe  d'argent  le  cois  servyr,  et  legnum  pacare, 
Est  victii  signnm  pro  victu  solvere  legnum.' 

Our  forefathers  had  always  an  eye  to  the  'disport'  of  the  hall,  and 
even  in  the  furniture  of  the  table  grotesque  forms  were  much  in 
vogue  as  auxiliaries  to  mirth.  The  huge  salt-cellar  was  the  chief 
ornament  of  the  board;  it  was  exerted  to  render  it  ornamental  and 
grotesque.  It  formed  a  conspicuous  object  on  the  table  before  or  on 
the  right  hand  of  the  master  of  the  house.  It  appears  in  various 
shapes :  sometimes  as  a  covered  cup  on  a  narrow  stem  :  occasionally 
in  a  castellated  form  ;  and  at  the  caprice  of  the  owner  or  maker  it 
frequently  took  the  form  of  a  dog,  a  stag,  or  some  other  favorite 
animal.  Edmund,  Earl  of  March,  in  1380,  left  to  his  son  and  daugh- 
ter  each  a  silver  salt  in  the  shape  of  a  dog.  Sometimes  they  were 
wrought  in  the  form  of  a  chariot,  with  four  wheels,  by  which  they 
could  be  passed  down  the  table  with  ease.  Salt-cellars  of  this  form 
are  frequently  introduced  into  the  illuminations  of  this  period.  The 


28 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


annexed  cut  represents  a  large  silver  salt  of  tlie  seventeenth  century, 
preserved  among-  the  plate  at  Winchester  College ;  although  of 
comparatively  recent  date,  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  it  was 
fashioned  after  a  more  ancient  type.  The  three  projections  on  the 
upper  rim  seem  to  have  been  intended  for  the  support  of  a  cover, 
perhaps  a  napkin,  as  it  was  considered  desirable  to  keep  the  cover 
clear  of  the  salt  itself:  'loke  that  your  salte  seller  lydde  touche  not 
the  salte,'  saith  the  '  Boke  of  Kerry nge.'  It  appears  from  numerous 
allusions  to  the  fact,  that  the  state  salt  was  used  by  the  sovereign  or 
entertainer  only;  and  it  is  not  unlikely,  from  the  great  number  of 
salts  mentioned  in  old  inventories,  that  when  possible,  each  guest  had 
also  one  for  his  particular  use.  It  is  not  easy  to  understand  how  any, 
one  at  the  upper  or  cross  table  could  be  seated  '  below  the  salt,'  as  it 
was  not  customary  to  sit  at  the  lower  end  of  that  board,  which  was 
left  unoccupied  for  the  more  convenient  access  of  servants.  The 
probability  is,  therefore,  that  this  phrase,  and  the  distinction  it  in- 
ferred, applied  only  when  the  company  sat  on  both  sides  of  a  long 
table,  where  the  position  of  a  large  salt  marked  the  boundary  of  the 
seats  of  honor,  or  what  may  be  termed  the  dais  of  the  board." 

"  Froissart,  in  his  admirable  Chronicles,  gives  us  a  description  of  the 
feast  given  on  the  arrival  of  Queen  Isabella  into  Paris  ;  he  says  that, 
after  washing  their  hands,  the  king  and  queen  and  all  the  court 
entered  the  hall ;  you  must  know,  he  continues,  that  the  great  table 
of  marble  which  is  in  this  hall,  and  is  never  removed,  was  covered 
with  an  oaken  plank  four  inches  thick,  and  the  royal  dinner  placed 
thereon ;  near  the  table,  and  against  one  of  the  pillars,  was  the  king's 
buffet,  magnificently  decked  out  with  gold  and  silver  plate,  and  much 
envied  by  many  who  saw  it.  Before  the  king's  table,  and  at  some 
distance,  were  wooden  bars  with  three  entrances,  at  which  were 
sergeant-at-arms,  ushers,  and  archers,  to  prevent  any  from  passing 
through  but  those  who  served  the  table  ;  for  in  truth  the  crowd  was  so 
very  great  that  there  was  no  entering  but  with  great  difficulty.  There 
were  plenty  of  minstrels  who  played  away  to  the  best  of  their 
abilities." 


THE  DINING-ROOM.  29 
A  GLIMPSE  OF  THE  PAST. 

We  are  able  to  present  a  rude  but  picturesque  sketch  of  a  dinner- 
table  taken  from  an  Italian  work  by  one  Christoforo  de  Messisburgo, 

Fro.  2. 


which  has  been  saved  for  us  by  one  of  those  indefatigable  French- 
men.*   It  can  hardly  fail  to  interest. 

*  Mobots,  Usages,  et  Costumes  au  Moyen  Age.    Par  Paul  Lacroix. 


30 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


The  period  is  about  1540.  The  print  shows  the  lord,  the  lady,  and 
the  guest  seated  at  the  end  of  the  table ;  and  it  seems  odd  to  us,  but 
nearly  all  the  pictures  of  this  early  time  represent  them,  as  in  this 
picture,  seated,  and  wearing  their  hats  or  bonnets,  decorated  with 
plumes,  etc.  On  either  side  are  seated  what  seem  to  be  officers  of 
the  household,  Avhile  at  the  lower  end  are  placed  the  retainers  and 
fighters  of  the  house. 

The  dinner  is  nearly  over,  and  the  indications  all  point  to  a  free, 
if  not  an  easy  style  of  manners  ;  for  musicians,  cats,  dogs,  all  seem 
not  to  be  filled  with  aAve  in  presence  of  grandeur,  or  to  be  specially 
on  their  good  behavior. 

It  is  a  serious  question  whether  the  relation  between  master  and 
man,  the  upper  and  the  lower,  is  not  much  worse  now  than  then.  The 
pursuits  of  life  brought  them  together,  and  they  were  not  divided 
by  a  deep  and  impassable  gulf  in  their  pleasures  and  ways  of  living. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  the  benches  are  rude,  and  that  the  table 
is  covered  with  a  cloth. 

What  they  ate  seems  not  to  have  been  unworthy  of  the  gourmand 
of  to-day;  here  is  something  of  the  variety  named  :  "  Patt's  of  young 
chickens,  of  fresh  venison,  of  veal,  of  eels,  of  bream,  of  salmon,  of 
rabbits,  of  pigeons,  of  small  birds,  of  giblets,  of  a  mixture  of  cods' 
livers  and  fish  chopped,  not  forgetting  small  pates  made  of  beef 
hashed  with  dried  raisins,"  etc.,  etc. 

Eoasts  and  ragouts  were  many,  and  a  treatise  of  the  fourteenth 
century  enumerates  thirty  distinct  dishes  at  a  feast,  beginning  with 
beef,  and  closing  with  a  swan  cooked  and  reclothed  with  its  skin 
and  feathers  complete.  But  the  eating  was  undoubtedly  more  deli- 
cate in  Italy  and  France  at  this  period  than  in  England,  as  it  is  to- 
day. 

They  knew  well  the  meaning  of  entremets,  dorures,  desserts;  the 
ordinary  dessert  they  say  {"ordinary!")  was  made  up  with  "baked 
pears,  medlars,  peeled  nuts,  figs,  dates,  peaches,  grapes,  filberts, 
white  and  red  sugar-plums,  etc,  etc."  The  value  of  garlic  in  their 
meats  was  appreciated,  as  it  is  not  with  us;  not  that  they  made 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


31 


their  dishes  reek  with  it,  as  doubtless  Mistress  Bridget  would  make 
ours;  no,  they  knew  what  a  delightful  zest  a  "  suspicion"  of  it  will 
give  to  any  palate. 

It  is  doubted  by  many  whether  they  did  not  dine  better  in  the 
fifteenth  century  in  Paris  than  they  do  to-day  in  the  nineteenth. 
Kead  this :  — 

"Dining  out  in  Paris. — Very  few  people,  when  they  take  it  into 
their  heads  to  give  a  dinner,  consider  what  they  are  about  to  impose 
on  their  fellow-creatures.  The  great  object,  with  the  Amphitryon,  is 
to  exhibit  his  silver-plate,  his  furniture,  his  wife's  clothes. 

We  don't  refer  to  those  absurd  dinners  where  you  eat  vol-au-vents, 
dubious  turbots,  strange  game,  and  queer  truffles ;  where  the  lady  of 
the  house  arranges  for  dessert  an  endless  file  of  seedy  bonbons  and 
chalky  biscuits.  That  sort  of  affair  is  a  regular  take-in,  —  one  of  Paul 
de  Rock's  scenes,  as  disagreeable  as  it  is  ridiculous.  We  allude  to  the 
usual  dinner-party,  which  is  simply  bad  without  being  absurd,  —  '  the 
correct  thing,'  so  styled  because  it  is  served  by  two  rascals  in  livery, 
commanded  by  another  big  rascal  in  black  called  a  nf&itre  (V hotel. 
This  head  devil  is  altogether  insufferable.  The  two  others  are  content 
to  soil  and  grease  the  coats  and  dresses  of  the  company. 

But  the  large  man  carves  so  as  to  leave  all  the  best  bits  for  down- 
stairs. The  fellow  should  be  made  to  hand  round  his  dishful  of  mauled 
pieces ;  instead  of  which  he  picks  out  and  puts  on  your  plate  fish- 
bones, rags,  scraps,  odd  morsels,  two  asparaguses,  and  twelve  peas. 
This  kind  of  waiting  is  unsatisfactory,  because  you  are  at  the  mercy 
of  a  man  whose  interest  it  is  to  withhold  wings  and  inflict  drumsticks. 
Every  guest  ought  to  help  himself,  as  to  choice  and  quantity,  from 
whatever  dish  is  set  before  him.  The  chief  drawback  to  dining  out  is 
its  everlasting  sameness,  as  to  the  things  to  eat  and  the  way  they  are 
served.  You  may  go  to  a  hundred  dinners  exactly  like  the  first: 
after  a  pale  broth,  with  certain  floating  ornaments  in  it,  '  Sherry,  sir, 
pale  or  brown  ? '  says  the  perfectly  serious  rascal,  and  pours  you  out 
the  mixture  of  cheap  brandy,  burned  sugar,  and  sweet  spirits  of  nitre. 

1  Chateau  Yquem,  '47  ? '  says  another  droll  dog. 

'  Turbot,  lobster  sauce  or  caper  sauce  ?  ' 

Just  so :  then  filet  de  hazuf  with  mushrooms,  of  course,  says  the 
veteran  of  a  hundred  feasts. 


32  THE  DINING-ROOM. 

You  get  reckless,  and  taste  of  everything,  but  you  are  hungry 
when  you  get  through,  and  would  be  glad  of  some  beef-tea. 

On  the  whole,  dinners  are  bad  and  unwholesome,  partly  because 
no  one,  nowadays,  keeps  a  stock  of  wine,  but  sends  out  and  buys  for 
the  occasion ;  as  some  scholars  and  speakers  get  up  classical  allusions 
and  authorities  for  the  display  of  the  moment.  Again,  the  motive  and 
purpose  of  dinners  is  not  clear.  If  it  be  to  show  polite  attention,  it  is 
a  failure,  when  the  dinner  is  not  a  good  one.  If  it  be  the  gratification 
of  palate  and  apjoetite,  then  it  means  business,  and  all  gourmands  and 
judges  of  wine  will  agree  that  the  first  thing  to  do  is  to  do  without 
the  ladies.  Ladies  come  late  and  dishes  are  spoiled  by  the  delay. 
They  take  up  no  end  of  place,  and  get  their  skirts  under  your  chair./ 
They  don't  eat,  and  men  are  ashamed  to  devour  beside  them,  and  the 
servants  profit  by  the  general  indifference  to  get  off  the  legs  and  arms 
and  carcasses  (with  two  asparaguses).  Then  also  ladies  are  apt  to  sit 
too  long  at  dessert,  encouraging  its  senseless  profusion,  and  they  frown 
upon  the  cigar. 

It  ought  to  be  settled  squarely  and  be  understood  that  a  dinner 
shall  be  either  what  we  may  call  a  mob-dinner,  with  $  200  of  roses, 
nothing  solid  to  eat,  elaborate  dessert,  ices  modelled  and  painted, 
fruits  fresh  and  dried,  etc.,  etc.,  liqjuors ;  or,  a  practical  dinner,  good 
wine  (no  Madeira,  which  no  longer  grows),  no  swell-dishes,  no  flowers, 
no  balderdash.  This  is,  however,  Utopian.  Bad  dinners  will  prevail, 
and  so  bad  and  so  many  of  them,  that  the  host  ought  to  send  the  day 
after  to  inquire  after  the  guests  he  has  tried  to  poison."  * 

We  have  spoken  of  the  food  that  was  eaten. 

The  "  drynkinge"  was  ample ;  beer  prevailed  from  a  very  early  time, 
and  was  drunk  by  hogsheads.    Every  great  house  had  its  brewery. 

Wines,  if  made  in  England,  were  boiled  and  sweetened  and  spiced. 
Better  wines  afterward  came  in  from  Spain  and  France. 

Glass  drinking-cups  were  brought  from  Venice  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  and  Henry  VIII.  is  reported  to  have  had  a  great  store  in 
his  "cubbords."  Porcelain,  as  we  know,  was  brought  from  China 
by  the  Portuguese  early  in  the  sixteenth  century,  but  was  costly 
and  rare  for  a  long  period. 


*  From  "Parasine,"  by  Nestor  Roqueplast.    Hetzel  &  Cie.,  Paris. 


THE  DINING-11003L 


33 


In  the  year  1591  Queen  Elizabeth  used  at  her  banquet  a  thousand 
dishes  of  glass  and  silver. 

In  those  early  days  the  cook  was  often  an  artist  as  well  as 
a  man  of  quality.     God  grant  that  noblemen  may  become  cooks 


Fig.  3. 


again !  The  brother  of  Cardinal  Otho,  as  we  read,  was  his  cook. 
The  highest  nobles,  if  not  cooks,  served  the  dishes  for  the  king  and 
his  guests.    But  hard  work  is  more  disreputable  now  than  then. 

The  kitchen,  here   reproduced   from   an   old   Italian  drawing, 


34 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


shows  in  some  degree  how  the  abundance  was  cooked.  The  fire, 
it  seems,  was  built  on  the  stone  floor  in  the  centre  of  the  room, 
over  which  the  great  stew-pan  held  its  seething  treasures;  while 
on  the  sides  of  the  fire  the  busy  spits  prepared  their  delicious  foods. 
The  chief  cook,  wearing  his  bonnet  graced  with  a  sprig  of  some 
aromatic  flavor,  glorifies  his  office  in  the  midst  of  his  assistants. 

Of  one  thing  we  may  be  sure,  that  meats  cooked  in  the  free 
air  before  the  blazing  wood  were  better  than  the  baked  meats  we 
noAv  eat  and  are  obliged  to  eat,  smothered  in  the  close  air  of  the 
closed  oven. 

But  the  "lower  classes,"  of  course,  did  not  then  live  in  that  way. 
Do  they  now,  when  progress  has  almost  deified  mankind?  We 


Fig.  4.  Fig.  5. 


give  from  the  same  work  the  print  of  the  plain  bourgeois  or  busi- 
ness man  taking  his  solitary  meal  ;  most  likely  a  simple  one,  but 
we  may  hope  a  well-cooked  one.  Indeed,  when  we  read  that  in 
the  sixteenth  century  the  corporation  of  pastry-cooks  was  in  France 
a  very  important  body,  with  coats  of  arms  and  seals  and  officers, 
and  that  they  produced  "many  kinds  of  tarts,  and  pies  of  meat  to 
be  eaten  hot  or  cold,"  we  may  conclude  that  the  bourgeois  were 
not  ill-fed. 

The  companion  print  shows  the  swine-keeper  and  his  pigs,  which 
in  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  had  come  to  be  an  important 
article  of  food. 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


35 


The  interior  of  kitchen  (Fig.  6)  shows  a  good  fire  blazing  on  the 
hearth,  which  is  well  supplied  with  pots,  pans,  and  roasters.  The 
cooks,  too,  appear  to  be  in  good  condition,  and  not  overworked. 

Fig.  6. 


An  old  manuscript  in  the  Bodleian  Library  shows  these  slight 
sketches  of  English  kitchens,  which  are  very  simple. 

Fig.  7. 


Fig.  8. 


36  THE  DINING-ROOM. 

From  a  house  near  Boston,  England,  the  following'  inventory  was 
taken: — 

"In  the  Kechyn.  —  A  hen-cage  with  a  shelfe  withyn.  2  tubs. 
2  sowes  (large  tubs).  A  great  boll  and  a  lesser  boll.  A  hogs-hed 
to  put  in  salt.  A  market  maunde  (basket)  with  a  coveringe.  12 
brass  pots.  Kettles  &c.  weighynge  together  167  lbs.  A  great  yron 
spyt  weighynge  14  lbs.  A  payre  of  cobbards  of  yron  weighynge 
23  lbs.  Other  spytts,  droppyng-pans,  frynge-pans,  brandreths  &c. 
weighinge  86  lbs." 

The  furniture  and  food  of  the  peasantry  during  the  mediaeval 
period  was  common  and  coarse ;  a  cupboard,  a  few  benches,  and 
some  wooden  trenchers  supplied  their  needs.  Art  had  not  shone 
upon  them ;  and  we  may  ask,  Has  it  even  now  shone  upon  the  Fall 
River  operative?  Among  the  New  England  farmers  it  has  shed 
its  light,  and  in  many  a  farm-house  may  be  found  tasteful,  if  simple 
rooms. 

We  quote  a  dismal  and  highly  colored  picture  of  the  homes  of 
the  peasants  about  the  year  1400:  — 

"The  houses  of  the  peasantry  were  hovels  of  poverty  and  filth, 
and  the  villages  were  mere  clusters  of  mud-built  huts  covered  with 
reeds  and  straw."  (Bad  as  this  was,  is  the  condition  of  the  opera- 
tives of  Glasgow  and  Manchester  better  ?  ) 

"  Although  chairs  and  buffet-stools  were,  during  this  period  (four- 
teenth century),  in  a  more  general  use,  and  were  often  very  beau- 
tifully decorated  witli  needle-work,  benches  and  forms  were  still 
the  seats  in  the  hall. 

"The  tables  were  of  the  rudest  make.  The  poets  of  the  age, 
faithful  in  their  delineations,  describe  them  as  mere  'hordes'  and 
trestles. 

"The  high  table  at  which  the  lord  sat  was  movable,  but  the 
side-tables  were  generally  fixtures  of  coarse  materials  and  work- 
manship, and  made  by  carpenters;  these  were  the  tables  'dor- 
mant.'   Lydgate  writes :  — 

'Eke  in  the  halle  it  was  cournable, 
On  ech  party  was  a  dormant  table.' 

Even  as  late  as  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.,  the  great  halls  in  the 


* 


THE  DINING-ROOM.  37 

palaces  of  that  monarcli  contained  little  else  but  '  tables  dorrnaunte ' 
and  '  fformes  dorniaunte.' "  * 

No  serious  innovation  took  place,  however,  until  the  beginning 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  when  the  introduction  of  the  banqueting- 
room,  or  dining-parlor,  led  the  upper  classes  gradually  to  abandon 
the  custom  of  eating  with  their  retainers  in  the  hall ;  and  we  find 


Fig.  10. 


an  allusion  to  it  in  the  Ordinances  of  Eltham,  made  in  1526,  where 
it  is  stated  that  "  sundrie  noblemen  and  gentlemen  and  others  doe 
muche  delighte  and  use  to  dyne  in  corners  and  secret  places,  not 
repayring  to  the  kinges  chamber  or  hall."  This  change  is  evident 
by  the  fact  that  few  domestic  buildings  were  without  dining-rooms 
entirely  detached  from  the  hall.    In  the  accounts  of  the  Surveyor- 

*  Turner's  "  Domestic  Architecture,  Fourteenth  Century." 


38 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


General  to  Henry  VIII.,  before  referred  to,  we  find  a  statement  of 
the  repairs  done  to  the  "kynges  dynyng  chamber,"  and  also  to  the 
"  quenys  dynyng  chamber,"  at  the  manor  of  Greenwich. 

After  the  fifteenth  century,  the  "great  dining-hall"  gradually 
declined  in  importance,  as  the  lord's  habit  of  dining  in  common 


Fig.  12. 


with  his  retainers  and  servants  went  out  of  fashion.  A  more 
exclusive  feeling  began  to  prevail,  and  much  to  the  disgust  of  the 
old-time  people ;  for  growing  out  of  this  change  the  widespread 
and  beautiful  habit  of  hospitality  was  gradually  abandoned.  Up 
to  this  period  the  custom  in  all  great  houses  was  to  receive  the 
stranger  and  traveller  freely.     Inns  and  hostelries  now  sprang  up, 


THE  dining-room. 


Fig.  13. 


Fig.  14. 


40 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


and  the  benches  of  the  common  dining-room  in  the  great  houses 
were  abandoned,  first  by  the  master  and  then  by  the  chance  guests. 
Merchants  began  to  get  rich,  and  the  more  strenuous  ways  of  mod- 
ern life  began  to  rule  society ;  until,  indeed,  hospitality  has  faded 
away  among  the  lost  arts. 

But  little  furniture  existed  before  the  time  of  the  Tudors,  most  of 
the  seats  being  benches.  Still,  from  an  early  day,  state  chairs  had 
been  built,  with  some  attempts  at  style  and  art.  We  give  here  a  few 
examples  of  these ;  but  they  are  stiff,  uncomfortable,  and  hardly  rise 
to  the  first  step  of  art. 

The  settle,  table,  and  money-box  (Fig.  14),  from  a  manuscript  in 
the  Bodleian  Library,  show  better  examples,  and,  though  far  from 
perfect,  indicate  the  desire  to  express  fineness  of  form  and  beauty 
of  combination  in  the  useful  articles  of  life. 

We  read  how,  in  France,  "  The  Duchess  of  Orleans  bought  of 
Johan  de  Troies  a  chair  for  her  chamber,  the  four  legs  of  which 
were  painted  vermilion,  with  a  cover  on  which  were  depicted  dogs 
and  birds  and  other  devices,  garnished  with  a  fringe  of  soy." 

Fig.  15. 


The  great  standing  chest,  or  "standard,"  stood  in  the  great  halls; 
these  were  often  elaborately  carved,  and  many  brought  from  Venice 
were  painted  with  scenes  in  gay  colors. 

Fig.  15  is  a  print  of  one  from  Rockingham  Castle ;  these,  however, 
varied  much  in  form  and  decoration. 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


41 


During  the  time  of  Henry  VIII.  society  had  become  less  war- 
like, less  predatory,  and  the  castle  was  giving  way  to  the  mansion. 
With  peace  and  security  the  arts  asserted  themselves.  The  forms 
and  styles  of  the  Italian  Renaissance  had  penetrated  to  England, 
and  a  style  of  architecture  and  decoration  grew  up  there  suited  to 
its  domestic  life,  which  we  now  know  as  the  Tudor  Gothic.  An 
excellent  example  of  this  style,  refined  and  elaborated,  may  be 
seen  in  Mr.  Van  Brunt's  design  for  Mr.  Chase's  library,  shown  in 
our  pages. 

The  chairs  of  the  Tudor  period  were  often  supplied  with  cushions 


Fig.  16. 


of  velvet.  Chairs,  too,  were  brought  from  Venice,  and  were  some- 
times enriched  with  gilding.    Fig.  16. 

By  this  time,  too,  the  parlor,  or  "talking-room,"  had  appeared 
in  the  houses  of  the  noble  and  the  rich,  which  was  a  resort  for 


42 


THE  DINING  ROOM. 


dames  and  squires  when  the  dinner  had  advanced  beyond  prudent 
bounds. 

The  banquet  in  Henry  VIII.'s  time  grew  to  be  most  luxurious 
and  elaborate.  The  dinner  was  not  only  extravagant  with  rare  and 
costly  dishes,  fruits,  and  wines,  but  was  varied  with  mummings  and 
maskings.  The  table  was  a  fairy  scene,  and  glittered  with  gold 
and  silver.  But  down  to  this  period  the  floors  were  strewn  with 
rushes.  Carpets  had  appeared  from  Spain,  but  they  were  small 
and  costly,  and  were  reserved  for  the  parlor  or  the  lady's  chamber. 

The  tables  now  were  massive,  and  the  legs  were  richly  carved. 
Earthenware  from  Italy  and  from  Delft  came  to  England  and  was 
sought  for.  But  the  "trencher"  of  wood  was  still  in  use.  These 
were  often  painted  with  a  line  or  verse  of  poety.  "Polishing  the 
trencher"  is  a  phrase  still  in  use. 

The  court  cupboard  was  elaborately  carved,  and  was  used  to 
display  the  stores  of  plate  and  glass. 

Ladies  still  attended  to  many  household  arts ;  the  making  of  pre- 
serves was  still  practised  by  them ;  bread,  too,  was  not  unworthy 
their  lovely  fingers ;  and  to  learn  to  use  starch  well  was  a  lady's 
pleasure. 

Books  were  now  in  use,  and  were  no  longer  chained  to  the  board 
for  safety. 

The  accession  of  the  Stuarts  found  England  at  peace,  and 
prosperous.  Commerce  was  widespread,  and  all  things  of  use  and 
luxury  came  to  England.  Art  was  more  and  more  diffused  in  the 
households,  not  only  of  the  rich  and  noble,  but  of  the  middle  and 
the  humbler  classes. 

Chairs  at  this  time  came  from  Spain  as  well  as  from  Venice ; 
and  many  of  these  Spanish  chairs  Avere  covered  with  black  ox- 
hide richly  embossed,  and  studded  with  brass  nails.  Wooden  seats 
also  were  made  in  England  of  many  kinds  and  with  more  or  less 
carving.  The  one  here  given  dates  back  to  the  Cromwellian  j^eriod ; 
it  is  of  oak,  and  rudely  but  effectively  cut.  It  is  in  the  possession 
of  Edward  Hooper,  Esq.,  of  Cambridge.    Fig.  17. 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


43 


Fig.  17. 


Coffee  was  added  to  the  drinks  of  England  by  a  Greek  named 
Canopins  in  1637.  Twenty  years  later  coffee-houses  dispensed  the 
drink  in  the  streets  of  London. 

Tea  was  introduced  about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
and  was  sold  in  1657  at  fifty  shilling's  a  pound. 

"I  did  send,"  says  Pepys,  in  1661,  "for  a  cup  of  tea,  a  China 
drink,  of  which  I  never  had  drunk  before." 

The  tea-services  which  now  came  into  use  were  of  Oriental  porce- 
lain, which  were  brought  into  Europe  by  the  Dutch. 

But  Gothic  richness  and  quaintness  were  doomed  to  banishment 
in  the  reigns  of  the  Stuarts. 

The  queen,  Henrietta  Maria,  was  a  Frenchwoman,  and  with  her 
came  French  fashions  and  French  furniture,  for  which  France  was 
then  famous.     Following  her  time  came  the  bad  but  attractive 


44 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


styles  of  Louis  XIV.  and  Louis  XV.,  which  since  that  day  have 
dominated  all  others  in  England. 

To-day  war  is  declared  against  them,  and  they,  too,  are  doomed 
to  disappear  before  a  purer  and  a  better  taste. 

The  awakening  of  a  desire  for  better  things  in  household  art 
is  most  marked  in  England  to-day,  and  is  being  felt  with  us.  Com- 
mencing some  fifteen  or  twenty  years  ago  with  a  love  for  quaint- 
ness  and  antiquity,  it  has  developed  into  a  widespread  love  for,  and 
perception  of,  the  true  and  the  beautiful  in  the  house. 

The  dining-rooms  collected  in  this  volume  are  worthy  attention, 
and  will  repay  it.  We  have  done  well,  and  we  may  do  better, 
whenever  our  people  begin  to  see  the  difference  between  the  bad  and 
the  best.  A  few  already  do.  Artists  and  men  of  leisure  are  apply- 
ing taste  and  knowledge  to  this  most  beautiful  and  useful  art,  — 
household  decoration. 

We  have  one  rock  ahead  which  may  wreck  society  and  the  home, 
—  the  cook. 

This  gets  from  bad  to  worse,  and  we  may  yet  be  forced  to  adopt 
the  "heathen  Chinee,"  or  to  go  into  a  co-operative  system  of  life,  to 
enable  us  to  get  an  eatable  dinner  at  all. 

There  is  danger ! 

In  the  early  days  of  our  American  history  food  was  largely  the 
prize  of  the  bow,  the  spear,  and  the  hook.  Meat  at  first  was  the  wild 
game  of  the  woods,  and  the  bays  and  creeks  abounded  with  fish. 

"  Fat  hogs,  kids,  venison,  poultry,  geese,  partridges,"  are  men- 
tioned, and  it  is  told  also  how  three  boys  "  brought  in  a  bushel  of 
eels  and  sixty  great  lobsters."  Governor  Winthrop,  in  one  of  his 
letters,  enumerates  the  following  articles  of  food :  "  Meat,  Peas,  Oat- 
meal, Malt,  Beef,  Prunes,  and  Aquavitae."  The  woods,  too,  abounded 
with  wild  fruits,  such  as  the  huckleberry,  blackberry,  strawberry,  etc. 

Our  Puritan  ancestors  were  too  busy  in  trying  to  win  a  living  upon 
this  hard  New  England  coast,  and  too  earnest  in  saving  souls,  to  know 
or  care  much  about  art.  Their  furniture  was  rude,  and  attempted 
only  the  useful.    We  give  here  a  drawing  of  Governor  Carver's 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


45 


chair,  now  in  the  Museum  at  Plymouth,  which  shows  what  they  had 
in  those  days.  It  is  true  that  some  few  articles  of  better  workman- 
ship, which  had,  too,  the  charm  of  art,  were  brought  from  England, 
and  are  still •  found  in  the  best  of  our  old  houses.  One  of  the  most 
noticeable  chairs  in  the  possession  of  Francis  Peabody,  Esq.,  of  Dan- 
vers,  is  fine  in  form,  and  is  handsomely  carved.    Tradition  says  it  is 


Fig.  18. 


the  chair  upon  which  sat  the  judge  who  condemned  the  witches  din  - 
ing the  Salem  frenzy. 

In  New  England  the  three  meals  were  partaken  of  at  sunrise,  mid- 
day, and  sunset ;  and  at  nine  o'clock  the  bell  or  curfew  was  a  notice 
that  the  hour  for  sleep  had  come. 


46 


THE  DINING-ROOM. 


The  simplicity  of  life  has  gone  from  New  England,  but  the  variety 
of  food  has  vastly  enlarged.  Elegant  people  now  dine  in  the  even- 
ing, and  the  easy  and  delightful  old  hospitality  of  the  tea-table  is 
out  of  fashion  ;  indeed,  all  but  formal  hospitality  has  departed.  Will 
it  ever  return  \ 

At  the  period  of  the  American  Revolution  much  good  work  was 
done,  and  chairs,  tables,  etc.,  of  mahogany,  that  fine  old  wood,  were 
brought  from  England  into  Boston,  Charleston,  and  Richmond;  some 
of  which  still  survive  in  the  claw-footed  chairs  of  George  III.'s  time, 
and  are  much  prized. 

In  an  inventory  of  the  household  goods  of  the  Rev.  John  Eliot,  Jr., 
of  Cambridge,  taken  in  1GG8,  the  following  articles  are  mentioned:  — 

"  In  the  Hall.  —  6  leather  chairs,  at  £  1  4s. ,6  d.  ;  long  table,  a  forme, 
and  3  joyned  stools,  at  £  1  10  s.;  4  turned  chairs,  2  great  and  2  small ; 
1  pair  of  andirons  with  brass  knobs ;  1  still  ;  and  a  bottom  of  lead. 

"  In  Plate,  viz. —  One  tankard,  at  £6;  nine  spoons,  £4  16  s. ;  a 
beer-cup,  and  a  dram-cup,  £2  12  s.;  a  wine-cup,  8s.  Sd. ;  a  tobacco- 
box  and  a  pair  of  tongs,  £  1  0  s.  6  (L,  in  all  £  14  7  s.    A  watch,  £  2." 

The  plate  indicates  a  household  much  above  the  average.  New 
England  was  poor,  and  but  little  luxury  existed  ;  but  it  is  a  curious 
sign  of  the  times,  that  in  this  clergyman's  house  a  "still"  was  kept, 
and  that  the  plate  was  in  great  part  a  tankard  and  three  drinking- 
cups. 


THE  LIBRARY. 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Fig.  Page 

1.  UNROLLED  PAPYKUS  MANUSCRIPTS   53 

2.  PLAN  OF  MEMNONIUM   54 

3.  BOX  OF  MANUSCRIPTS   55 

4.  INITIAL  LETTER   57 

5.  BIBLE  CHAINED  TO  THE  DESK   59 

6.  CHAINED  BOOK-CASE  AT  HERTFORD   GO 

7.  CHAINED  BOOK   61 

8-10.    OLD  READING-DESKS   61 

11.    THE  APOSTLE  ELIOT'S  CUPBOARD   64 


THE  LIBRARY. 


wrt?V$^£/M^  HEN  we  remember  that  a  thousand  years  ago  it 
■  wwHp^  took  the  old  monks  seven  years  of  hard  work  to 
\-»r*^*  n/'/tt  make  a  copy  of  the  Bible,  of  which  now  one  society 
^'TaM^^^^  alone  sends  out  a  hundred  thousand  copies  in  a 
year,  we  can  but  be  lost  in  amazement  at  the  strange 
things  which  the  art  of  man  has  devised  and  achieved.  Books  and 
libraries  are  to  us  such  a  matter  of  course,  that  we  forget  all  that 
has  been  done  before  us. 

Public  libraries  have  now  reached  fearful  proportions ;  we  do 
not  refer  to  those  of  London  and  Paris,  but  in  this  new  country  we 
find  in  — 

The  Library  of  Congress  already,  pamphlets,  50,000 ;  books, 
280,000. 

The  Public  Library  of  Boston  has  288,000  volumes. 

The  Astor  Library  of  New  York,  mostly  valuable  books,  has  grown 
since  1850  from  20,000  volumes  to  over  150,000  ;  an  increase  of  more 
than  seven  fold  in  twenty-five  years.  At  the  same  rate  of  increase 
in  the  next  twenty-five  years,  it  will  contain  about  1,000,000  volumes; 
and  within  the  next  one  hundred  years,  an  impossible  figure. 

Mr.  Sibley,  the  Librarian  at  Harvard  College,  is  perplexed ;  he  tells 
me  that  even  now  he  is  obliged  to  pile  his  volumes  upon  the  floor,  — 
space  is  consumed.  Serious  men  are  beginning  to  look  upon  the 
burning  of  the  Alexandrian  libraries  by  Julius  Csesar,  by  Theophilus 
(a.  d.  389),  and  finally  by  the  Caliph  Omar  (in  the  600's),  as  a  boon. 


52 


THE  LIBRARY. 


Omar's  reason  was  quaint,  and  to  him  potent :  "  If  these  writings  of 
the  Greeks  agree  with  the  Koran,  they  are  useless,  and  need  not  be 
preserved;  if  they  disagree,  they  are  pernicious,  and  ought  to  be 
destroyed." 

We  are  prone  to  lament  the  loss  of  ancient  books.  No  doubt  we 
have  something,  perhaps  much,  to  lament :  —  who  can  tell  %  But  it 
may  solace  the  regretful  soul  to  know  the  results  of  the  unrolling  a 
great  number  of  ancient  papyri. 

Herculaneum  remained  buried  from  the  year  a.  d.  79  to  the  year 
a.  d.  170G.  In  the  course  of  this  century  many  rolls  of  papyrus  have 
been  discovered,  and  excited  much  interest.  It  was  doubted  if  they 
could  ever  be  unrolled;  "they  were  in  wooden  cases,  so  much  burned 
that  they  cannot  be  recovered."  In  the  beginning,  however,  of  the 
present  century,  an  English  commission  made  great  efforts,  and, 
with  the  assistance  of  Sir  Humphry  Davy,  some  eighty  or  more 
were  unrolled,  and  with  this  result :  — 

"  Of  the  eighty-eight  unrolled  MSS  the  great  body  con- 
sists of  works  of  Greek  philosophers,  of  sophists ;  nine  are  of  Epicu- 
rus ;  thirty-two  bear  the  name  of  Philodemus,  three  of  Demetrius ; 
one  of  each  of  these  authors,  Colotes,  Polystratus,  Carneades,  Chry- 
sippus ;  and  the  subjects  of  these  works,  ....  and  of  those  the 
authors  of  which  are  unknown,  are  either  Natural  or  Moral  Philoso- 
phy, Medicine,  Criticism,  and  general  observations  on  Arts,  Life,  and 
Manners."  * 

Those  who  believe  that  the  human  mind  is  a  perennial  spring  from 
out  which  flow  thoughts,  hopes,  aspirations,  they  will  exclaim  :  "  Is 
this  all  ?  lias  wisdom  indeed  died  with  the  Greeks,  or  the  Hebrews, 
or  the  Chaldeans  ?  Is  the  loss  of  the  Alexandrian  library  a  calamity 
irreparable  ? "  Those  who  live  by  precedent,  who  fear  that  all 
human  experience  is  lost  which  is  not  written  down,  that  man  simply 
imitates  the  man  who  precedes  him,  will  answer,  "  Yes."  But  which 
is  right? 

What  is  attempted  here  is  to  give  a  picture,  more  or  less  perfect, 
*  Edwards's  Memoirs  of  Libraries. 


THE  LIBRARY. 


53 


of  a  few  of  the  interiors  which  the  ingenuity  and  taste  of  our  people 
have  devised,  as  the  receptacles  or  treasure-houses  for  their  volumes. 
No  effort  lias  been  made  to  show  the  most  expensive  rooms,  but 
such  as  express  a  sense  of  the  beautiful  in  their  adaptation  to  their 
uses. 

Fig.  1. 


With  their  contents  it  is  impossible  now  to  treat.  Some  brief 
mention,  however,  of  what  has  led  up  to  our  present  means  of  intel- 
lectual gratification  may  perhaps  be  pardoned,  if  I  consent  to  be 
brief,  as  I  do. 

Many  of  the  libraries  of  our  private  houses  now  contain  thousands 
of  volumes,  and  some  of  them  the  rarest  and  most  valuable  of  edi- 
tions ;  among  which  those  of  Mr.  Lenox  at  New  York,  and  Mr.  Pro- 
basco  at  Cincinnati,  are  remarkable. 

The  room  for  books  —  the  library  —  is  of  comparatively  modern 
invention,  so  far  as  it  applies  to  private  houses. 

In  the  days  of  the  ancients,  volumes  (volumen,  a  roll)  were  rolls  of 
writings  upon  parchment  or  papyrus,  which  were  kept  with  care  in 
public  buildings  or  in  palaces  or  churches,  to  be  used  upon  special 
occasions.  When  we  read  that  Jesus  went  into  the  synagogues  and 
opened  the  book  and  read,  it  means  that  he  unrolled  the  manuscripts 


t 


54 


THE  LIBRARY. 


of  the  Jewish  writing's,  which  were  kept  in  the  synagogues  for  this 
purpose. 

There  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  collections  or  libraries  existed  as 
early  as  the  fourteenth  century  before  our  era  in  Egypt,  Sir  Gardi- 
ner Wilkinson  designates  one  of  the  rooms  in  the  Memnonium  at 
Thebes  as  used  for  the  purpose,  and  gives  a  reconstructed  ground- 
plan  of  the  wonderful  structure.    Fig.  2. 


Fig.  2. 


o»«|  •  •• 

•  •  ••O 

O9l|.l»00 

•  ■>  ••  ''  ©•  - 

m?oo  l 

O  «Lj»»   fOO  O  } 


"  Mr.  Champollion  goes  a  step  further,  and  ex- 
pressly states  that  on  the  jambs  of  the  first  of 
these  inner  rooms  are  sculptured  '  Thoth  the 
inventor  of  letters,'  and  '  The  Goddess  Saf  his 
companion,'  with  the  titles  'Lady  of  Letters' 
and  'President  of  the  Hall  of  Books.'"  — Ed- 
wards's Memoirs  of  Libraries. 

Some  of  the  earliest  writings  of  the  Baby- 
lonians and  Assyrians,  according  to  Layard, 
were  made  upon  clay  bricks  or  tablets,  which 
were  afterward  hardened  in  the  fire.  But  the 
books  or  volumes  of  the  Egyptians  and  Greeks 
were  upon  rolls  of  papyrus  or  parchment.  It 
may  interest  some  to  see  in  what  form  these 
existed,  and  we  copy  here  from  Edwards's  work 
drawings  of 

1.  The  ink-bottle  and  reed  pen,  and  manu- 
script unrolled.    Fig.  1. 

2.  A  box  filled  with  the  volumes.    Fig.  2. 
The  book  collections  of  the  Middle  Ages  were  contained,  (1)  in 

the  monasteries,  and  (2)  in  the  palaces ;  but  the  former  were  much 
the  most  important. 

The  monks,  being  the  lovers  of  learning,  and  having  leisure  and 
the  means  for  doing  it,  became  the  collectors,  the  transcribers,  the 
writers  of  books. 

In  many  of  the  monasteries  was  a  room  set  apart  for  the  scribes, 


THE  LIBRARY.  55 

with  whom  by  and  by  were  associated  the  illuminators.  This  room 
was  the  Scriptorium,  and  here  were  made  most  of  the  books  of  the 
Middle  Ages ;  here,  too,  was  born  for  modern  times  pictorial  art. 
The  illuminators  and  miniature-painters  of  those  days  were  many 
of  them  artists  in  feeling-  and  delicate  colorists  and  draftsmen. 

Scribes  and  illuminators  appear  to  have  existed  in  Ireland  and 
England  from  a  very  early  day ;  but  about  the  year  600,  St.  Augus- 

Fig.  3. 


tin  was  sent  from  Rome  to  christianize  the  "pagans  of  Kent."  His 
influence  was  quickly  and  powerfully  felt ;  and  at  Canterbury  a 
school  of  illuminators  was  formed,  which  produced  many  works. 
Some  of  these  early  manuscripts  exist,  while  the  stone-walls  of  that 
day  have  gone  to  ruin.  Of  these,  one  called  the  Bcnedictional  of 
St.  Ethelwold  is  a  splendid  example  of  Anglo-Saxon  illumination, 
now  in  the  possession  of  the  Duke  of  Devonshire.  It  was  written 
in  960-980  by  Godemann,  a  monk  of  St.  Swithin.  Another  book 
of  his  is  in  the  library  of  the  city  of  Rouen.  "  Caedmon's  Para- 
phrase of  Holy  Writ"  is  in  the  Bodleian  at  Oxford. 

St.  Augustin  may  be  said  to  have  established  at  Canterbury  the 
first  library  in  England.  He  brought  witli  him  on  his  mission  the 
following  books :  — 


56 


THE  LIBRARY. 


1.  The  Holy  Bible,  in  two  volumes. 

2.  The  Psalter. 

3.  The  Gospels. 

4.  Another  Psalter. 

5.  Another  copy  of  the  Gospels. 

6.  The  (Apochryphal)  Lives  of  the  Apostles. 

7.  The  Lives  of  the  Martyrs. 

8.  An  Exposition  of  the  Gospels  and  Epistles. 

This  collection  grew,  and  finally  included,  besides  religious  works^ 
books  of  history  and  earthly  romances.  A  Catalogue  of  it  exists  in 
Trinity  College,  Dublin,  which  will  interest  the  fanatics  of  antiquity. 

The  library  in  the  Monastery  of  Christ  Church,  Canterbury,  in 
spite  of  danger  and  depredations  of  wars  and  turmoils,  had  grown  so 
large  that  by  the  end  of  a.  d.  1000's  it  counted  over  three  thou- 
sand titles.  This  Catalogue  still  exists,  but  is  more  curious  than 
valuable. 

Alcuin,  an  English  priest,,  who  went  from  York  to,  France,  estab- 
lished a  school  of  illuminators,  under  the  patronage  of  Charlemagne 
(about  800),  at  Aix  la  Chapelle,  in  which  many  works  were  made, 
some  of  which  exist  in  the  Imperial  Library  of  Paris.  In  183G  one 
of  these  writings  was  sold  by  auction  in  London  for  £  1,500.  A 
single  one  of  these  fine  manuscripts  was  a  treasure  eagerly  sought 
and  highly  prized  by  any  monastery. 

The  Bible  was  of  course  a  book  in  first  request.  Fine  copies  were 
bought  by  kings,  and  they  were  devised  with  much  ceremony  as 
precious  possessions.  Pious  people  made  their  interest  with  Heaven 
by  presenting  books  to  the  libraries  of  the  churches  or  monasteries. 
People  who  borrowed  books  for  perusal  were  required  to  deposit  a 
sum  of  money  equal  to  the  value  of  the  book. 

The  labor,  care,  and  cost  expended  by  these  pious  transcribers  can 
hardly  be  appreciated  except  by  seeing  their  work.  Some  of  the  early 
copies  of  the  Bible  were  written  in  letters  of  liquid  gold  upon  parch- 
ments of  glowing  purple. 


THE  LIBRARY. 


57 


Fig.  4. 


The  early  illuminators  used  various  forms  of  decoration,  and  much 
gold  as  well  as  color  in  this  work.    We  give  here  one  of  their  initial 

letters  upon  which  they  spent  much 
time  and  art.  Rarely  were  books  sold 
in  those  days  before  the  1300's  ;  but  we 
learn  now  and  then  such  facts  as  these  : 
that  Grecie,  Countess  of  Anjou,  bought 
a  book  of  Homilies,  for  which  she  paid 
two  hundred  sheep  with  their  wool, 
besides  a  large  quantity  of  wheat,  bar- 
ley, and  millet,  and  three  marten's 
furs.* 

Richard  II.,  of  England,  gave  for  a 
Bible  and  two  romances  £28,  —  about 
£  400  of  present  currency. 

Edward  III.  paid  for  a  "Book  of  Ro- 
mances "  about  £  960  of  our  present 
value. 

It  is  on  record  that  Guy  of  Warwick 
left  a  large  collection  of  French,  Latin, 
and  English  books  to  Bordesley  Abbey, 
mostly  romances ;  delectable  reading 
for  their  leisure  hours  !  The  titles  even 
we  do  not  know,  but  among  the  early 
ones  are  these  :  — 

"  Romaunt  de  la  Rose. 
Florence  de  Blanche  Fleurs. 
The  Seven  Thousand  Virgins,  etc.,  etc. 
Liber  de  Launcelot  in  Gallico. 
Liber  qui  Vocatur  Graal  in  Gallico. 
Romaunz  de  Perceval  le  Galors,"  etc. 

After  1300  some  trade  grew  up  in  books,  and  in  Paris  it  became  a 
known  occupation  to  buy  and  sell  them.    But  so  expensive  were  they, 


*  Scott's  Half-Hour  Lectures,  etc. 


58  THE  LIBRARY. 

and  so  great  the  needs  of  scholars,  that  we  find  laws  were  made  upon 
the  subject.  In  1342  a  law  existed  in  Paris  which  compelled  the 
booksellers  to  hire  their  books  to  scholars  ;  the  same  existed  in  Tou- 
louse, Boulogne,  and  Vienna.  The  rates  of  charge  were  fixed  by  the 
University.    I  find  on  record  as  follows  :  — 

"  St.  Gregory's  Commentaries  on  Job,  for  reading  100  pages,  8  sous. 
St.  Gregory's  Book  of  Homilies,  28  pages,  for     .       .     12  deniers 
Anselm's  De  Veritate  de  Libertate  Arbittrii,  40  pages      .  2  sous. 
Peter  Lombard's  Book  of  Sentences    .       .       .  3  " 

Scholastic  History   .       .       .       .       .       .       .       .  3  " 

Augustin's  Confessions,  21  pages  .....     4  deniers. 

Gloss  on  Matthew,  by  Brother  Thomas  Aquinas,  57  pages,  3  sous. 
Bible  Concordance  .       .       .       .       .       .       .       .  9  " 

A  Bible  10  sous."  * 

But  the  time  came  when  a  cheaper  page  was  produced  than  vellum 
or  papyrus  ;  and  from  what  ? 

"  The  earliest  known  specimens  of  paper  made  from  rags,"  says  Mr. 
Scott,  "are  some  documents  of  the  year  1318  in  the  archives  of  the 
Hospital  at  Kaufbeuren,"  and  "the  first  German  paper-mill  Ave  have 
some  account  of  was  worked  at  Nurnburg  in  1390."  Who  invented 
this  ?  How  %  Why  1  These  are  questions  ;  but  it  is  quite  true  that 
paper  was  invented  without  the  aid  of  books. 

This  was  the  first  fact  of  a  new  era,  when  the  pen  was  to  become 
powerful,  like  the  sword ;  but  not  mightier !  —  that  is  a  phrase. 
A  century  after  came  a  block,  a  wood-cut  for  stamping  on  the  page : 
the  earliest  yet  found  of  these  dates  back  to  1418. 

What  next?  Then  "block-books"  were  made,  —  pictures  for  the 
Bible,  to  help  the  priests  in  their  ministrations.  These  exist,  but  are 
curious  and  scarce.  From  this  grew  movable  types,  which  about 
1440  were  in  existence.  Four  names  are  conspicuous  for  this  inven- 
tion :  Gutenberg  of  Strasburg,  Faust  of  Mayence,  Coster  of  Haar- 
lem, Schoffer  of  Gernsheim. 

Gutenberg,  Faust,  and  Schoffer  worked  together,  and  jointly  they 

*  Bibliomania  in  the  Middle  Ages.    By  Merryweather. 


THE  LIBRARY.  59 

produced  from  movable  types  their  first  great  book,  the  Latin  Vulgate 
(1450),  now  known  as  the  "  Mazarin  Bible " ;  one  copy  of  which 
exists  in  this  country  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Lenox. 

From  this  point  the  art  of  printing  spread  like  fire  on  the  prairie, 
until,  in  1530,  it  is  computed  that  three  hundred,  printing-places 
existed  in  Europe. 

But  for  a  century  after  printing  was  invented  books  were  scarce 
and  valuable.    The  earliest  public  use  of  the  Bible  shows  it  chained 


Fig.  5. 


to  the  reading-desk  for  safety.  In  the  libraries  of  the  monasteries 
and  elsewhere  the  books  were  kept  on  the  shelves  chained.  We  give 
here  an  illustration  (Fig.  6)  (still  existing,  I  believe)  from  the  library 
of  Hereford,  England,  showing-  the  books  clasped  in  their  preserving- 
chains.  A  book  with  the  chain  attached  is  now  in  the  Public  Library 
of  Boston ;  and  another,  from  Mr.  Sumner's  collection,  is  at  Harvard. 
(Fig.  7.) 

It  is  a  collection  of  manuscripts  written  upon  paper  about  the  year 
1390,  and  is  in  an  excellent  state  of  preservation.    It  is  bound  in 


60 


THE  LIBRARY. 


Fig.  6. 


oaken  covers  with  a  pig-skin  back ;  a  part  of  the  strap  which  held  it 
together  still  remains.  The  iron  chain  is  to  be  seen  riveted  to  the 
wooden  cover.  The  description  attached  to  it  shows  it  to  have 
brought  at  a  public  sale  £  2  8  s. 


THE  LIBRARY. 
Fig.  7. 


61 


Books  appear  to  have  made  their  way  more  slowly  in  England 
than  in  France ;  yet  in  the  fifteenth  century  we  find  books  men- 
tioned; and  in  the  curious  Paston  Letters  is  a  catalogue  of  those 
owned  by  that  family.  These  were  probably  manuscripts  made 
before  the  days  of  printing.  In  1427  the  widow  of  Lord  Fitzhugh 
wills  as  follows :  — 

"And  so  I  wyl  yat  my  son  Robert  have  a  Sauter  (Psalter)  couered 
with  rede  velwet,  and  my  doghter  Mariory  a  Primer  cou'd  in  rede,  and 
my  doghter  Darcy  a  sauter  cou'ed  in  blew,  and  my  doghter  Malde 
Eure  a  prim'r  cou'ed  in  blew." 

The  reading  was  either  religious  treatises  or  "  romance  books,"  the 
mother  of  our  novel. 

Hardly  any  bookcases  of  this  early  period  exist.  The  earliest  ar- 
ticles to  hold  books  pictured  in  the  manuscripts  are  a  sort  of  reading- 
desk  or  "lettern"  (lectern),  which,  as  many  of  the  books  were  large 

Fig.  10. 


Fig.  9. 


62 


THE  LIBRARY. 


and  lieav)^,  were  quite  needful.  Three  are  here  pictured,  which  are 
convenient  and  in  a  degree  ornamental.    (Figs.  8,  9,  10.) 

In  the  days  of  the  Tudors  (sixteenth  century)  we  find  books  in 
private  houses,  and  that  women  spent  some  of  their  time  in  reading 
the  "Romaunts"  of  the  earlier  time.  Bookcases  were  now  made  with 
much  carving  and  ornamentation,  and  the  books  were  protected  with 
curtains.  Now  hardly  a  house  exists  which  does  not  contain  a  larger 
collection  than  most  palaces  could  then  enjoy. 

But  we  may  well  ask  ourselves  whether  we  are  not  doing  what 
Shakespeare  said  they  did  once  in  England,  "  spoiling  a  good  thing  by 
making  it  too  common."  Eight  thousand  publications  a  year  in  Eng- 
land, and  twelve  thousand  in  America,  may  make  one  pause. 

We  have  also  gone  into  a  craze  upon  the  subject  of  education!  We. 
may  as  well  answer  these  questions :  Are  Ave  not  unfitting  men  and 
women  for  the  work  of  life?  Are  we  not  taxing  ourselves  heavily 
and  unwisely  to  teach  all  children  all  things,  which  can  avail  to 
only  a  few? 

It  is  found  we  cannot  pay  a  teacher  of  sewing  to-day  in  our  com- 
mon schools;  but  can  we,  can  any  community,  pay  and  live  for  such 
a  list  of  studies  as  is  attempted? 

In  the  public  schools  of  Boston  thirty-five  studies  are  enumerated, 
as  follows :  — 

"  List  of  the  branches  authorized  to  be  taught  in  the  public  schools 
of  this  city :  Orthography,  reading,  writing,  English  grammar,  geogra- 
phv,  arithmetic,  general  and  local  history,  good  behavior,  algebra, 
vocal  music,  drawing  (art,  mechanical,  and  industrial),  physiology, 
hygiene,  agriculture,  bookkeeping,  surveying,  geometry,  natural  pliilos- 
(>})//>/,  chemistry,  botany,  civil  polity  of  the  Commonwealth  and  of  the 
United  States,  Greek,  French,  Latin,  astronomy,  geology,  rhetoric 
(which  covers  elocution  and  prose  composition),  logic,  intellectual 
and  moral  science,  political  economy,  arts,  trades  and  occupations  (in 
cities  and  towns  where  industrial  schools  have  been  established)." 

We  may  well  pause  and  consider. 

The  early  books  of  New  England  were  few ;  no  room  called  the 


THE  LIBRARY. 


63 


"library"  was  included  in  their  houses.  In  the  study  of  the  minis- 
ter a  few  books  found  a  place,  almost  all  scholastic  or  of  a  controver- 
sial religious  kind.  The  titles  of  some  of  those  written  in  New 
England  were  such  as  these,  and  sufficiently  sensational  to  suit  the 
newspapers  of  to-day  :  — 

New  England's  Salamander  discovered.  By  an  irreligious  and 
scornful  Pamphlet  called  New  England's  Jonas  cast  up  at  London, 
etc.,  etc.,  etc.    By  Edward  Winslow.    London.  1647. 

The  Heart  of  New  England  rent,  at  the  Blasphemies  of  the 
present  Generation,  etc.,  etc.    By  John  Norton,  etc. 

The  first  book  printed  in  America  was  the  Psalms  translated  into 
metre  by  Weld,  Eliot,  and  Mather.  This  was  published  in  1640, 
and  was  known  as  the  "  Bay  Psalm  Book."  It  was  republished  in 
England,  and  went  through  seventy  editions. 

The  edition  of  Eliot's  Indian  Bible,  published  in  1660,  was  and 
is  a  remarkable  example  of  industry,  patience,  and  faith.  Some 
twenty-six  or  twenty-seven  copies  are  to  be  found  in  this  country, 
and  probably  about  the  same  number  in  England.  Fac-si miles  of 
the  title-page,  from  the  copy  owned  by  the  Public  Library  of  Boston, 
will  appear  in  the  new  magazine  shortly  to  appear  under  the  name 
of  "The  Facsimilist." 

The  New  England  Primer  was  in  general  use  from  1691.  It 
began  with  the  alphabet,  and  contained  a  strange  dialogue  between 
Christ,  A  Youth,  and  the  Devil ;  pictures  of  John  Rogers  burning  at 
the  stake,  also  his  wife  and  "  nine  small  children,  with  one  at  the 
breast,"  "with  which  sight  he  was  not  in  the  least  daunted";  also 
the  Assembly's  Shorter  Catechism,  and  Cotton's  Milk  for  Babes.  The 
woodcuts  are  marvellous  for  simplicity  and  grotesqueness. 

These  early  examples  of  New  England  books  may  interest  the 
curious ;  and  it  may  be  well  to  compare  them  with  the  perfect  ex- 
amples of  book-making  now  presented  to  us  by  the  Messrs.  Osgood 
and  Company  of  Boston,  Harpers,  Appletons,  Scribners,  and  Sheldons 
of  New  York,  Lippincott  and  Lea  of  Philadelphia,  and  others  in  the 
wonderful  "  West." 


64 


THE  LIBRARY. 


Of  the  bookcases  or  writing-tables  of  the  early  colonial  period  we 
have  but  little.    It  is  not  likely  that  much  existed.    Books,  few  as 


they  were,  were  in  many  cases  carefully  guarded  in  a  locker  or  other 
safe  place,  and  they  were  too  few  in  most  cases  to  have  a  room  set 


THE  LIBRARY. 


65 


apart  for  them.  I  find  in  the  President's  room  at  Cambridge  a  quaint 
piece  of  furniture  described  to  me  as  the  writing-desk  of  John  Eliot 
the  Apostle ;  it  is,  however,  rather  a  locker  or  cupboard.  It  is  made 
of  oak,  and  is  a  work  of  art  of  a  simple  but  effective  character.  It 
bears  the  initials  J.  E.,  1681,  cut  on  the  front.  The  wood  is  of  oak, 
and  after  the  lapse  of  two  hundred  years  it  has  not  become  black, 
as,  according  to  the  popular  notion,  it  should ;  it  is  not  darker  than 
olive-wood,  though  richer  in  tone. 

The  library  has  come  to  be  the  room  of  the  house,  —  that  room 
where  the  air  is  peopled  with  the  finest  spirit  of  the  best  departed. 
Hospitality  to  the  living  daily  diminishes,  and  partly  by  reason 
of  books.  For  it  is  a  thousand  times  pleasanter  to  commune  with 
the  wisest  and  wittiest  of  the  dead  than  with  the  dull  and  common- 
place of  the  living.  But  the  Avise  man  never  foregoes  human  sym- 
pathy and  conversation ;  if  he  does,  there  is  danger.  Books  will  do 
much,  but  not  all ;  they  will  not  make  great  men ;  it  is  in  action 
that  men  become  greatest;  but  books  may  tell  us  how  to  act. 

In  this  room,  then,  we  can  and  should  combine  the  souls  of  the 
dead  and  the  conversation  of  the  living ;  and  Aet  has  its  great  func- 
tion to  create  here  a  tabernacle  worthy  of  both. 

The  examples  given  in  our  book  must  speak  for  themselves. 


AMERICAN  INTERIORS. 


THE 


LIBRARY  OF  HENRY  W.  LONGFELLOW, 

AT  CAMBRIDGE,  MASS. 

OMEWHERE  about  the  year  1739  or  1740  the 
fine  house  where  the  poet  Longfellow  now  lives 
was  built.  In  those  "  good  old  days,"  as  we  love 
to  call  the  days  of  a  hundred  years  ago  (and 
Noah  said  the  same  of  his  forefathers'  days), 
they  builded  fewer  houses  than  now,  and  they  buildcd  some 
few  of  these  delightfully.  The  old  "  Vassal  House  "  was  one 
of  those  choice  homes,  which  grows  more  and  more  attractive 
as  it  gathers  about  it  its  legacies  of  time  and  humanity. 

Colonel  John  Vassal  we  suppose  to  have  been  one  of  those 
men  whom  we  call  "merchant  princes";  and  this  house,  which 
perhaps  is  the  only  proof  of  it,  is  a  good  proof.  There  were 
fewer  merchants  then,  also,  and  among  them  were  men  of  large 
comprehension,  high  courage,  great  power  of  brain  and  action. 
We  need  not  be  surprised  that  such  men  as  Colonel  Vassal  and 
his  son  were  stanch  loyalists ;  and  thafe  when  the  tempestuous 
Revolutionary  days  came,  this  son,  the  owner  of  this  fine  place, 
abandoned  it  rather  than  submit  to  the  reiom  of  what  he  called 
King  Mob  in  place  of  King  George.  It  is  certain  he  did  aban- 
don it,  and  the  house  became  the  headquarters  of  General 
Washington,  when  in  command  of  the  little  army  of  Ameri- 


70  THE  LIBRARY  OF  HENRY  W.  LONGFELLOW. 

cans,  in  the  year  1775.  The  smaller  room  adjoining  the  Li- 
brary was  then  the  dining-room  of  Washington,  as  it  is  now 
the  study  of  Longfellow. 

For  nigh  forty  years  the  poet  has  enjoyed  the  shelter  of  this 
roof,  has  sat  under  the  shade  of  these  old  trees,  has  looked 
with  dreamy  eyes  across  the  placid  meadows  of  Charles  River, 
and  rested  them  upon  the  distant  blue  hills,  beyond  which 
imagination  could  picture  the  universe,  and  see  "  Evangeline  " 
and  "  The  Belfry  of  Bruges "  ;  could  hear  "  Footsteps  of 
Angels "  and  "  Voices  of  the  Night."  No  patriot  could  be 
better  housed  ;  no  poet  can  be  better  sheltered  ;  —  a  fit  home 
for  able  men. 

We  have  not  to  write  a  biography  or  a  laudation,  —  only  to 
give  briefly  some  explanation  of  one  room  in  this  house,  which 
is  shown  in  our  picture.  The  house  itself  is  dignified  and  am- 
ple, its  style  being  a  very  mild  form  of  the  classic.  The  hall 
and  staircase  through  which  Ave  pass  to  the  Library  has  those 
quaint  twisted  balusters  which  lead  us  back  to  the  days  of 
Queen  Anne,  and  which  always  please. 

The  Library  is  in  the  northeastern  quarter  of  the  house ; 
it  is  a  spacious  room  some  twenty-two  feet  by  thirty  in  size. 
Entering  from  the  hall,  the  eye  sees  through  the  northern  win- 
dows a  shaded  lawn,  with  paths,  seats,  vases,  etc.,  in  keeping 
with  the  house  and  its  history.  Let  us  turn  our  back  to  those. 
Carved  bookcases  —  French  work,  we  think  —  fill  the  spaces, 
except  on  the  eastern  side,  where  two  wide  windows  have  been 
converted  into  alcoves  for  books.  All  these  are  filled,  and 
their  fine  bindings  attract.  Let  us  not  despise  the  outsides  of 
things  ;  let  us  be  choice  in  our  surroundings  ;  let  us  have  rooms 
to  enjoy,  and  books  too,  if  we  can.  A  swift  glance  shows  a 
most  varied  collection  of  Spanish,  French,  Italian,  and  German 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  HENRY  W. 


LONGFELLOW. 


71 


authors,  who  rest  in  peace  beside  the  good  writers  of  America 
and  England.  Then  we  remember,  that  before  the  poet  the 
professor  was,  and  that  at  all  these  delectable  fountains  he 
drank.  The  mantelpiece  is  most  unpretending,  —  not  stately 
enough  for  the  room  ;  but  it  is  very  quaint  in  its  old  tawny  mar- 
ble sculptured  with  lions  and  griffins.  The  walls  of  the  room, 
panelled  to  the  ceiling,  are  in  a  wonderful  state  of  preserva- 
tion, and  are  painted  a  creamy  white.  We  are  apt  to  regret 
that  fine  panelling  should  be  covered  with  paint ;  but  this  light 
cheerful  color  certainly  has  its  charm.  Might  it  not  be  wholly 
unbearable,  if  one  were  shut  in  by  the  sombre  hues  of  the 
walnut  or  mahogany  ?  The  wainscot  loses  itself  in  a  fine 
and  effective  cornice.  It  is  uncommon  in  our  advanced  days. 
Too  often  this  feature  is  left  to  some  workman,  who  does  as 
well  as  he  can,  but  it  is  not  well  enough.  On  the  western 
side  of  the  room  stand  two  Ionic  columns,  which  make  a 
most  striking  effect  in  the  room.  Standing,  as  they  do,  inde- 
pendently of  the  wall,  they  make  a  recess  or  alcove,  in  which 
we  see  the  largest  of  the  bookcases.  These  columns  were  so 
placed  by  a  law  of  necessity,  not  of  design.  In  extending  the 
walls  of  this  room  it  was  found  necessary  to  support  the  upper 
floor,  and  these  two  columns  were  placed  here  for  the  purpose. 
But  it  was  artistically  done.  The  accessories  of  the  room  are 
good :  a  very  fine  full-length  picture  of  Listz  catches  the  eye  ; 
a  bust  or  two  crown  the  bookcases ;  and  some  brilliant  Japan- 
ese screens  and  ornaments  give  life  and  piquancy  to  the  quiet 
which  sometimes  reigns  too  supreme  in  the  library  of  the  good 
American. 

Note.  —  On  an  iron  plate  in  a  chimney-back  are  the  arms  of  the  Vassals,  and  the 
date  1739. 


72 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  HENRY  W.  LONGFELLOW. 


Among  the  interesting  books  in  the  collection  are  the  fol- 
lowing :  — 

Histoire  du  Theatre  Francois,  fifteen  volumes,  and  Histoire  du  The- 
atre Italien,  seven  volumes,  once  belonging  to  David  Garrick, 
and  having  his  book-plate,  with  this  motto  from  Menage:  "  La 
premiere  chose,  qu'on  doit  faire  quand  on  a  emprunte  un  livre, 
c'est  de  le  lire,  afin  de  pouvoir  le  rendre  plutot." 

Coleridge's  Sibylline  Leaves.  1817.  Author's  own  copy,  with  auto- 
graph marginal  notes,  and  one  stanza  of  "The  Ancient  Mariner" 
erased. 

Italian  Poets,  Pisa  edition ;  fifteen  volumes  fol.  Roman  parchment 
binding. 

Der  Nibelunge  Lied,  folio,  1840;  printed  for  the  Fourth  Centennial 
of  the  Art  of  Printing. 


THE 

DINING-ROOM  OF  DR.  CHADWICK, 

CLARENDON  STREET,  BOSTON,  MASS. 

HIS  room  is  on  the  ground,  or  first,  floor,  as 
we  term  it,  and  is  lighted  from  two  sides.  At 
the  end  opposite  the  entrance  door  is  a  large 
square  bay-window,  which  we  are  not  able  to 
show  in  the  drawing,  though  one  corner  of  it 
is  seen  on  the  left. 

The  room  is  some  17  by  22  feet,  including  the  space  in  the 
bay-window,  and  is  well  proportioned.  Its  style  may  be 
termed  "  Old  English,"  mainly  because  in  the  days  of  good 
sense  and  good  taste  this  kind  of  timber-work  was  well  done 
in  England. 

The  FLOOR  is  inexpensive,  and  is  finished  with  a  brownish 
stain,  protected  by  shellac.  Under  the  table,  as  shown,  i,s  a 
handsome  square  carpet,  which  is  essential  to  comfort  as  well 
as  elegance. 

The  wood-work  is  of  ash,  and  bears  a  delicate  tint,  to  re- 
lieve it  from  the  rawness  of  new  wood  ;  but  it  is  not  dark.  It 
is  a  question  whether  the  goodness  and  cheapness  of  black- 
walnut  has  not  led  us  into  making  our  rooms  too  sombre  and 
heavy  for  a  cheerful  life.    Certainly  a  dining-room  should  not 


74  THE  DINING-ROOM  OF  DR.  CHAD  WICK. 

run  to  that  character.  But  the  raw,  new  tones  of  tlie  lighter 
woods,  which  the  purists  now  affect,  is  most  unsatisfactory  for 
some  styles  of  work,  as,  for  example,  the  one  shown  here. 

An  ash  DADO  some  four  feet  high  protects  the  walls,  and 
finishes  them  as  nothing  can  do  so  well  in  a  dining-room. 

Two  cupboards  on  either  side  the  fireplace  are  not  only 
useful  as  such,  but  serve  also  as  side-tables  for  various  uses. 

The  WALL  itself  is  in  a  lightish  gray  tint,  which  is  much 
better  than  the  heavy  dull  colors  so  often  used  with  this  style 
of  finish.  This  is  completed  under  the  cornice  with  a  frieze 
or  stripe  of  squirrels  upon  paper,  which  is  of  course  less  ex- 
pensive than  stencilled  work.  It  will  be  observed  that  the 
timbers  are  earned  across  the  ceiling,  which  is  broken  into 
panels  by  cross-timbers. 

The  FURNITURE  of  the  room  is  of  carved  oak,  so  much  used 
in  France.  It  is  not  quite  massive  and  severe  enough  for  the 
room,  but  is  effective  and  pleasing.  It  is  a  question  whether 
the  spiral  cutting  for  wood  should  ever  be  used  where  strength 
is  required.  So  many  hopelessly  maimed  legs  are  lying  about 
the  world  which  no  hospital  can  cure,  that  one  is  filled  with 
pity  for  the  owners. 

The  portiere  covering  the  entrance-door  gives  opportunity 
for  a  fine  bit  of  Moorish  color,  and  that  the  artistic  taste  will 
never  neglect  using. 

The  lighting  of  the  room  deserves  attention.  It  will  be 
observed  that  no  great  chandelier  hangs  over  the  table,  often 
blazing  into  the  eyes  of  the  diners,  and  always  heating  the 
brain  to  fever,  which  a  very  little  wine  will  intensify.  In  place 
of  this,  four  wall-lights,  or  SCONCES,  amply  supply  the  needed 
light.  Two  of  these  are  shown  set  into  panels  over  the  fire- 
place, and  two  are  on  the  opposite  wall. 


THE  DINING-ROOM  OF  DR.  CHAD  WICK.  75 

The  pictures  and  ornaments  are  not  striking,  but  the  few 
bits  of  real  armor  on  the  fireplace  panel  are  effective  and  in 
keeping  with  the  style  of  the  room.  The  middle  panel  of  the 
fireplace  is  filled  with  an  old  German  picture  (date  1525), 
which  is  delicately  finished  for  that  period.  It  is  interesting, 
for  reasons.  The  frame  holding  it  swings  on  hinges,  and 
opens  to  a  small  cupboard.  On  the  back  of  the  picture  is  this 
inscription : 

ws3  3<s§  mm  -  xxxi  -       -  ix  -  aRcsras  stss 
-      -  mm       -  sisso  ©esswss. 

which  means : 

When  I  was  31  years  9  months  old  I  looked  like  this. 


THE 

LIBRARY  OF  DONALD  G.  MITCHELL, 

AT  WEST  HAVEN,  CONK 

HOUSANDS  of  us  remember  the  delight  which 
"  The  Reveries  of  a  Bachelor "  awakened  in 
us,  and  some  of  us  recall  the  handsome  young 
man  who  wrote  it  for  our  delectation.  We 
were  young  and  strong  and  hopeful  then ; 
we  are  young  and  strong  and  hopeful  now  certainly,  but  not 
so  overflowing  with  these  divine  qualities  as  then. 

It  is  a  satisfaction  to  us  to  know  that  "Ik  Marvel"  has 
a  completed  home  upon  those  peaceful  West  Haven  hills,  and 
that  from  the  wide  eastern  window  of  his  library  lie  looks 
across  the  pleasant  plain  to  the  trees  and  spires  of  the  beau- 
tiful town  of  New  Haven.  With  the  keen  perception  of  the 
landscape  gardener,  Mr.  Mitchell  long  ago  saw  the  beauties 
and  capabilities  of  this  spot,  which  he  has  patiently  and 
carefully  developed,  until  those  who  know  the  spot  enjoy  it 
in  spirit  as  its  master  does  in  fact. 

A  few  words  from  a  letter  of  the  master  will  seem  to  ex- 
plain our  drawing,  which,  good  as  it  is,  does  not  do  full  jus- 
tice to  the  room. 

That  he  could  have  made  a  more  "  noticeable  room,"  as 


78 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  DONALD  G.  MITCHELL. 


his  letter  says,  is  no  doubt  true ;  for  our  ideas  are  larger 
than  our  purses,  —  so  much  as  the  heavenly  is  grander  than 
the  earthly ;  but  this  room  is  noticeable,  and  satisfactory 
to  me,  and  I  believe  it  will  be  equally  so  to  those  who  are 
ready  to  possess  themselves  of  this,  its  counterfeit. 

"  The  walls  are  finished  roughly  with  ordinary  mortar 
floated  off  and  colored  a  dark  red.  The  cornice  is  of  pine, 
with  a  beading  of  black-walnut,  extending  around  upon  the 
book-shelves  as  well  as  upon  portions  of  the  wall.  For 
economy  of  space,  the  book-shelves  reach  to  ceiling,  and  are 
also  established  in  either  blank  of  chimney-breast  which  ex- 
tends into  the  room.  I  find  these  last  specially  convenient, 
and  their  position  has  enabled  me  to  give  greater  apparent 
breadth  to  chimney  and  greater  actual  breadth  to  mantel- 
piece. 

The  floor  has  a  border  of  yellow-pine  and  black-walnut, 
mitred  at  angles,  almost  two  feet  wide. 

The  enclosed  space,  floored  with  ordinary  white-pine,  is 
covered  with  English  Brussels  carpet  of  a  simple  geometric 
pattern,  quite  small,  the  colors  being  mainly  brown  or  fawn- 
color  with  bits  of  black,  white,  or  yellow.  The  carpet  has  a 
border  of  same  predominating  color  and  broad  band  of  green. 
An  old  Turkey  rug  is  before  the  fireplace. 

The  library,  of  twenty-five  hundred  to  three  thousand  vol- 
umes, is  quite  miscellaneous,  being  fullest  in  mediaeval* history, 
encyclopedias,  and  dictionaries,  and  works  relating  to  art  and 
agriculture.  The  ceiling  is  of  bald  gray  mortar,  only  because 
I  cannot  afford  to  decorate  it.  The  wood-work  is  almost  en- 
tirely of  white-pine,  to  which  effect  has  been  given  by  variety 
of  stain  (in  no  case  obscuring  the  grain  of  wood),  by  bits  of 


THE  LIBRAE,  Y  OF  DONALD  G.  MITCHELL.  79 

tile,  and  by  sparse  use  of  paper-hanging.  If  I  had  not  so 
many  windows,  I  should  have  given  the  walls  a  lighter  tint ; 
and  if  I  had  not  so  little  space,  I  should  not  have  carried  the 
book-shelves  to  the  ceiling:  in  short,  if  I  could  have  spent 
more  money,  I  would  have  made  a  more  noticeable  room." 


THE 


LIBRARY  OF  DR.  THEO.  F.  BRECK, 

AT  SPRINGFIELD,  MASS. 

IIS  room  is  some  eighteen  by  twenty-two  feet 
in  size.  Entering  from  the  hall,  the  eye  at  once 
falls  upon  a  stately  mantel-piece,  the  wood 
of  which  is  ash  of  a  dark  antique  color.  In 
each  of  the  pilasters  is  an  art-tile,  painted  in 
England,  stork  and  plants  upon  a  golden  ground.  The  shelves 
which  stand  on  the  main  shelf  are  furnished  with  a  small 
locker  and  some  drawers,  and  are  used  as  resting-places  for 
a  clock  and  vases  and  other  curious  and  rare  bits  of  china, 
etc.  In  the  middle  hangs  a  shield  and  some  swords,  which 
recall  the  past,  when  every  man  slept  in  harness,  and  remind 
us  that  the  day  may  soon  come  when  we*  shall  again  arm  for 
the  protection  of  life  or  liberty. 

On  either  side  the  mantel  we  see  low  bookcases,  well 
filled,  above  which  hang  Raphael's  and  Holbein's  Madonnas. 
The  end  of  the  room  upon  the  street  is  well  arranged :  in  the 
middle  is  a  broad  window ;  on  one  side  of  this,  cutting  off 
the  corner  of  the  room,  is  a  tall  cupboard,  with  open  shelves, 
—  a  rare  place  for  books  or  interesting  objects ;  opposite  to 
this  the  corner  opens  into  a  projecting  window,  furnished  with 


82 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  DR.   TIIEO.  F.  BRECK. 


seats  which  overlook  two  streets  with  their  busy  life.  This 
is  made  beautiful  with  colored  glass. 

Each  of  these  three  spaces  is  hung  with  curtains,  which  are 
of  dark  green,  covered  with  golden  storks.  The  same  stuff 
makes  a  portiere  to  drape  the  wide  doors  which  open  into 
the  dining-room. 

One  of  those  quaint  and  beautiful  old  spinning-wheels  stands 
near  the  oriel,  telling  of  the  "  good  old  time "  when  woman 
had  work  to  do  and  was  the  happier  for  it,  —  a  time  when 
there  were  less  nerves  and  more  muscle. 

The  table,  chairs,  and  sofa  are  of  dark  ash,  and  correspond 
with  the  mantel-piece,  which  is  the  key-note  of  all.  The  style 
of  furniture  designed  specially  for  the  room  may  be  classed 
as  a  simple  Gothic,  adapted  to  the  wants  of  to-day,  but  is  not 
an  imitation  of  anything  existing  in  Henry  VII.  or  any  other 
time.  The  attempt  has  been  successful,  in  greater  or  less 
degree,  to  construct  furniture  upon  the  true  principles,  that 
the  grain  of  the  wood  should  not  be  twisted  or  weakened, 
and  that  the  frame  which  supports  the  cushions  should  be 
distinct  and  decorative.  In  a  Turkish  harem  or  a  Pompeian 
room,  where  all  recline,  the  furniture  may  be  all  cushions ; 
but  in  a  room  where  we  wish  to  sit  upright,  it  is  not  good 
art  nor  £ood  construction.  The  bad  fashion  will  no  doubt 
pass. 

Our  good  woods  are  not  only  decorative  in  themselves,  but 
thev  suowest  strength  ;  whereas  a  room  filled  with  cushions 

«/  Do  o  ' 

may  be  downy,  but  it  is  also  "  dowdy":  it  lacks  life  and 
style. 

The  floor  is  well  covered  with  a  Turkish  carpet  of  the  dark 
reds  and  greens  which  prevail  in  them.  The  walls  are  hung 
with  a  paper  in  which  gold  and  dull  green  are  combined  into 


THE  LIBRAE  Y  OF  DR.  THEO.  F.  BRECK. 


83 


fern-leaves,  etc.,  not  so  obtrusive  as  to  detract  from  the  pictures 
and  decorations ;  the  border,  or  frieze,  about  a  foot  in  depth, 
is  a  dark  red,  lighted  with  a  procession  of  squirrels.  The 
room  is  very  satisfactory,  as  it  combines  that  repose  free  from 
dulness  which  should  characterize  a  library. 


THE 


DINING-ROOM  OF  DR.  THEO.  F.  BRECK, 

AT  SPRINGFIELD,  MASS. 


The  mantel-shelf  rests  upon  columns  supporting  two  well- 
carved  owls,  who  in  their  grave  and  stately  way  satisfy  the 
eye.  Above  the  shelf  rises  a  tall  mirror,  on  the  top  of  which 
are  seen  some  tiles  of  the  arts  and  the  muses,  in  colors. 


The  sideboard  is,  as  it  should  be,  the  principal  piece  of 
furniture  in  the  room :  it  is  decorated  with  fine  brasses,  and 
the  small  locker  in  the  top  is  panelled  with  two  tiles  repre- 
senting food-industries.  On  its  shelves,  china,  delft,  and 
silver  ware  find  fit  resting-places,  pleasing  to  the  eye  and 
suggestive  to  the  palate. 

The  tables  and  chairs  speak  for  themselves;  the  style  is 
more  severe  than  that  which  prevails  in  the  library,  but  har- 
monizes with  it. 

Facing  the  sideboard  is  a  broad  bay-window  hung  with 
curtains,  in  which  stands  a  pedestal  holding  the  "  Venus  de 
Milo." 


86  THE  DINING-ROOM  OF  DR.   T1IE0.  F.  BRECK. 


The  curtains  are  of  the  same  design  as  the  library,  but 
of  a  maize-colored  ground,  covered  with  storks  in  dark  green. 

The  floor  is  furnished  with  an  Indian  carpet  of  light  color, 
bearing  dark  arabesques,  and  completed^  with  a  broad,  rich 
border.  Outside  the  carpet  the  floor  is  varied  with  ash  and 
walnut  woods. 

Above  the  panelled  dado  the  walls  are  in  Pompeian  rod, 
finished  with  a  frieze  made  gay  with  cocks. 

The  chandelier  is  both  simple  and  elegant.  A  few  pic- 
tures and  bronzes  complete  the  room. 


THE 

DINING-ROOM  OF  GEO.  W.  NICHOLS,  Esq., 

CIONINNATI,  OHIO. 


THE 

GREAT  HALL  OF  J.  L.  RATHBONE,  Esq., 

AT  MENLO  PARK,  SAjNT  FRANCISCO,  CAL. 

$0fiK&mS  hal1  is  a  central  (covered)  court  of  the 
"i"  ^  j|{£^>  house,  and  is  used  as  a  living-room  and  pic- 
ture-gallery, as  well  as  the«  grand  interior  into 
,      1    which  all  the  rooms  of  the  house  open.    It  is 
approached  from  the  front  door  by  a  small 
vestibule,  which  is  floored  and  wainscoted  with  tiles. 

The  dimensions  of  the  hall  are  48  feet  in  length,  by  24 
feet  in  width,  by  25  feet  high.  The  ceiling  is  of  ground  glass, 
tinted. 

The  cross-beams  and  curved  sides  of  the  ceiling  are  painted 
in  fresco,  and  the  same  style  of  decoration  is  used  on  the 
upper  portion  of  the  walls.  The  wall  proper  is  tinted,  as  a 
background  for  pictures. 

The  floor  is  of  inlaid  wood.  A  large  Turkish  rug  occupies 
the  centre,  and  with  table,  sofa,  and  chairs  constitutes  the 
living-room.  The  rugs  upon  the  floor  are  very  fine  ;  one  of 
ostrich-feathers,  from  the  Straits  of  Magellan,  is  very  large 
and  rare. 

The  furniture  is  almost  wholly  of  old  black-oak.  It  is 
antique  French,  and  heavily  carved ;  it  was  bought  in  France, 
piece  by  piece,  by  Major  Rathbone.    The  large  oaken  mantel, 


90 


THE  GREAT  HALL    OF  J.  L.  RA  THBONE. 


which  extends  from  floor  to  ceiling  (not  shown  in  photo- 
graph, having  been  put  in  since  it  was  taken),  was  designed 
and  made  to  order  in  England. 

One  of  the  cabinets  shown  is  of  great  age,  and  interesting 
because  it  was  once  the  property  of  Charles  V.  of  Spain, 
and  by  him  presented  to  one  of  his  court.  It  is  a  remark- 
able piece  of  mechanism,  full  of  secret  drawers  and  compart- 
ments.   The  workmanship  is  admirable. 

The  pictures  are  principally  of  the  Spanish  school.  Most 
of  them  were  bought  by  Major  Rathbone  himself  in  Spain ; 
some  of  them  at  great  cost,  and  all  are  of  value.  The  collec- 
tion is  a  rare  one,  and  those  who  appreciate  and  understand 
Spanish  art  greatly  admire  many  of  the  subjects. 

There  are  also  one  or  two  paintings  by  Mrs.  Rathbone, 
copies  of  modern  French  animal  subjects,  which  are  faithful 
and  beautiful  copies. 

The  lighting  of  this  hall  being  from  the  roof  alone,  and 
through  tinted  glass,  is  of  a  rich  and  curious  tone,  —  heighten- 
ing the  antique  effect  of  furniture  and  paintings.  It  is  a  cool 
and  well-ventilated  room  in  summer,  and  in  winter  the  warm 
color  from  the  ceiling  and  the  generous  proportions  of  a  wood 
fire  give  it  an  air  of  great  luxury  and  comfort. 


THE 


LIBRAE Y  OF  GEOEGE  B.  CHASE,  Esq, 

OF  BOSTON. 

SPACIOUS  room,  some  thirty-three  feet  long, 
and  twenty-three  broad.  At  the  northern  end 
opposite  the  entrance  door  opens  the  bay-win- 
dow, through  which  we  see  rippling  water  and 
the  far-off  hills.  A  writing-table  stands  in  this 
bay,  and  first  attracts  attention :  here  the  writer's  chair  is 
turned  from  the  view  and  faces  the  apartment.  This  smaller 
table  is  one  of  two  for  which  there  is  ample  space. 

The  FLOOR  is  covered  with  a  crimson  carpet,  in  but  two 
shades,  which  color  prevails  in  the  chairs  and  coverings.  The 
curtains  are  of  a  heavy  olive-brown  material,  in  harmony  with 
the  walls  and  ceiling. 

One  of  the  handsomest  of  LIBRARY  TABLES  occupies  the 
middle  of  the  room  ;  it  is  of  black-walnut,  —  as  are  the  book- 
cases and  woodwork,  —  and  is  very  highly  carved  in  that  style 
of  decoration  usually  called  Elizabethan.  Our  drawing  will 
sufficiently  indicate  it.  The  table  is  some  three  and  a  half  feet 
by  six  feet,  and  is  none  too  large  for  the  uses  of  the  room. 
However  large  such  a  table  may  be,  books  will  there  accumu- 
late. Both  designer  and  workman  have  spared  no  pains  on 
this  handsome  production. 


92 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  GEORGE  B.  CHASE. 


Open  bookcases  fill  all  the  spaces,  and  are  about  five  feet 
high.  One  peculiarity  of  these  is  their  ample  depth,  some 
twenty  inches  ;  this  is  more  than  is  absolutely  needed  for  the 
books ;  but  it  gives  a  broad  top,  upon  which  vases,  busts,  and 
antique  bronzes  may  be  most  effectively  placed ;  the  mind, 
too,  is  insensibly  affected  with  the  impression  that  such  cases 
give  ample  room  for  whatever  accumulations  the  owner  may 
make. 

Some  of  the  chairs  are  broad  and  low  and  spacious,  while 
some  are  light  and  easily  movable.  Two  sorts*  of  chairs  are 
needed  in  a  library  :  the  first,  to  work  in,  to  write  in,  —  these 
should  be  easy,  but  not  too  easy.  The  second  to  read  in,  to 
rest  in,  to  dream  in  ;  and  these  may  be  very  easy. 

The  wall  above  these  bookcases  is  covered  with  a  leather 
paper  in  diaper  pattern,  where  brown,  black,  and  gold  inter- 
mingle, and  make  a  quiet,  and,  as  some  might  think,  a  darker 
background  than  would  seem  to  be  needed. 

The  few  PICTURES  which  ornament  the  walls  are  effective 
and  interesting,  and  are  not  numerous  enough  or  obtrusive 
enough  to  turn  this  library  into  a  picture-gallery,  while,  as  each 
picture  is  placed  in  a  separate  panel,  a  better  effect  is  obtained 
for  the  artists'  compositions.    The  principal  are  as  follows:  — 

1.  By  Fuller.    A  Landscape,  very  rich  and  harmonious  in  tone. 

2,  3.  By  J.  F.  Cole.    Two  Normandy  Landscapes,  with  sheep,  etc. 

4.  By  Ames.    An  ideal  Head. 

5.  By  Wurtz.    Landscape,  scenery  in  the  Hartz  Mountains. 

6.  By  Stanfield.    English  Landscape. 

7.  By  Otto  Weber.    Group  of  French  Cattle. 

8.  By  Gay.    A  delightfully  cool  and  attractive  shore  hill-view, 

between  which  breaks  the  sea,  showing  a  mackerel  fleet. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  GEORGE  B.  CHASE.  93 

But  the  mantel-piece  is  the  most  effective,  if  not  the  best, 
thing  in  the  house.  It  is  broad  and  large ;  the  shelf  is  sup- 
ported by  decorated  pilasters,  and  the  fire-opening  is  sufficient 
to  receive  either  brass  dogs  or  the  low  open  grate  suitable 
either  for  soft  coal  or  logs  of  wood,  while  its  unusual  height 
and  width  causes  a  fire  within  it  to  throw  its  heat  farther  and 
wider  into  the  room. 

The  mantel-piece  extends  its  carved  columns  to  the  ceiling, 
making  a  space  in  which  is  held  a  nearly  full-length  life-size 
portrait  of  Sir  William  Pepperrell,  Baronet,  commander  of  the 
New  England  expedition  which  succeeded  in  capturing  Louis- 
burg  in  1745,  — an  ancestral  portrait  of  the  most  distinguished 
member  of  an  early  family  in  New  England,  long  extinct  in 
the  male  line. 

The  ceiling  itself  is  very  elaborately  decorated  ;  it  is  divided 
into  panels,  the  "  Elizabethan  "  style  of  ornamentation  prevail- 
ing in  it,  and  is  painted  in  diaper  between  the  beams,  in  har- 
mony with  the  rest  of  the  room. 

For  those  who  admire  this  school  of  ornament,  it  is  well  to 
elaborate  the  ceiling ;  yet  to  the  great  majority  of  our  readers 
such  a  surface  should  be  but  a  study  rather  than  a  possession, 
for  two  reasons  :  — 

1.  The  time  which  its  faithful  execution  requires  takes,  not 
days,  but  weeks  of  labor,  as  the  workmen,  whether  in  wood,  in 
plaster,  or  in  color,  are  always  obliged  to  labor  at  great  disad- 
vantage of  position. 

2.  It  is  well  to  recollect  that  decoration  so  placed  is  to  some 
people  difficult  to  see  and  enjoy. 

The  library  contains  some  eighteen  hundred  volumes,  and  is 
very  full  in  the  department  of  American,  and  especially  of 
New  England  history,  containing  full  series  of  the  publications 


94 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  GEORGE  B.  CHASE. 


of  several  historical  associations,  together  with  the  Prince  and 
other  societies'  reprints. 

The  library  contains,  upon  two  shelves,  many  of  the  books 
of  the  owner's  ancestor,  the  Rev.  Stephen  Chase  ;  among  them 
a  copy  of  William  Perkins's  writings,  published  at  Oxford  in 
1613,  and  having  upon  the  fly-leaf  of  one  of  the  volumes  sev- 
eral autographs  of  early  New  England  clergymen,  among  them 
that  of  the  first  John  Eliot. 

If  a  study  of  our  illustration  of  this  library,  of  which  we 
have  thus  given  a  brief  description,  conveys  any  hint  to  the 
reader,  it  is  that  in  interior  decoration,  as  in  the  design  for  an 
exterior  or  in  the  laying  out  of  a  floor,  it  is  well  to  have  from 
a  professional  source  an  intelligent  motive,  which,  when  once 
determined  upon,  should  be  steadily  adhered  to,  from  the  start 
even  to  the  most  subordinate  detail.  Too  often,  in  America, 
he  who  builds  his  house  looks  upon  the  architect  or  profes- 
sional decorator  as  one  whose  services  can  be  safely  dispensed 
with  as  soon  as  the  usual  contracts  are  executed  and  the  house 
delivered.  How  few  realize  that  to  the  successful  decoration 
of  even  one  interior,  a  professional  architect  often  brings  hours 
of  patient  study  and  labor ! 


A  few  words  upon  the  conditions  that  all  library-rooms 
should  fulfil.  Such  a  room  is  not  merely  the  place  to  receive 
and  preserve  those  books  which  record  the  lives  and  thoughts 
of  other  men  and  women.  It  should  be  the  most  interesting, 
stimulating,  and  useful  room  in  the  house.  Here  the  family 
should  gather  in  the  evening  for  talk,  for  work,  for  reading ; 
here  should  come  friendly  people ;  here  should  wide,  open 
hospitable  bookcases  offer  and  tempt  all  comers  by  books 
placed  within  their  reach. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  GEORGE  B.  CHASE. 


95 


The  library-room  is,  and  ought  to  be,  the  most  attractive 
room  in  the  house,  because  its  atmosphere  should  be  full  of 
that  perfume  which  does  forever  linger  about  the  good 
thoughts  and  the  histories  of  good  and  great  deeds  of  our 
fellow-men. 


THE 


DINING-ROOM  OF  JOHN  V.  L.  PRUYN,  Esq., 

ALBANY,  1ST.  Y. 

0  house  in  Albany,  possibly  none  in  the  country, 
is  so  rich  as  this  of  Mr.  Pruyn's  in  Oriental 
chinas  and  works  of  art.  To  describe  them 
would  require  a  book.  We  can  give  but  a  few 
notes  descriptive  of  the  dining-room,  which  is 
some  seventeen  by  thirty  feet  in  size,  and  is  most  tasteful  and 
intcrestino;. 

The  ceiling  of  the  dining-room  is  in  dark  woods,  with 
ash,  cherry,  and  mahogany  in  the  cornice  ;  flooring  of  same 
woods,  and  wainscoting  of  black-walnut,  with  a  row  of  crim- 
son tiling  inserted.  Leather  paper  is  on  the  walls ;  a  leather- 
colored  ground  with  red  parrots,  green  leaves,  and  bunches  of 
black  grapes. 

Chandeliers  are  of  cuivre  poll ;  brackets  the  same  ;  clock 
on  chimney  the  same.  Candlesticks,  fire-dogs,  etc.,  are  all 
curiously  wrought ;  also  a  fine  pair  of  black  and  gilt  can- 
delabra, which  belonged  to  Prince  Napoleon,  in  the  style  of 
the  Empire. 

A  heavy  Smyrna  rug,  crimson,  green,  and  black,  covers  the 
middle  of  the  room.  Heavy  crimson  silk  curtains,  bordered 
with  black  velvet,  drape  the  three  windows.    A  lambrequin  of 


98 


THE  DINING  ROOM  OF  JOHN  V.  L.  PRUYN 


the  same  hangs  over  the  foldiner-doors  which  enter  the  draw- 
ing-room.  Antique  elnny-lace  curtains,  coffee-colored,  hung 
inside  of  red  ones,  are  at  the  windows.  The  lambrequin  on 
chimney-piece  is  of  crimson  leather,  held  with  brass  nails,  and 
is  heavily  fringed. 

The  old  oak  sideboard  in  the  recess  is  from  a  convent  near 
Sienna  ;  it  is  heavily  carved,  and  is  graced  with  various  pieces 
of  plate,  chiefly  old  English.  In  the  room  is  a  massive  carved 
oak  sofa,  bought  at  York,  England,  made  A.  D.  1568,  covered 
with  red  leather.  There  is  also  an  inlaid  corner  cabinet,  made 
in  Florence,  in  which  are  rare  bits  of  Venetian  glass,  etc. 
There  is  one  sideboard  of  ebonized  wood,  made  by  the  House- 
hold Art  Company  of  Boston,  inlaid  with  tile,  intended  chiefly 
for  plate.  Two  smaller  sideboards  stand  on  each  side  of 
chimney. 

A  large  mirror  hangs  over  the  chimney,  with  frame  of  wood. 
Two  family  portraits  hang  either  side  of  mirror.  Over  Floren- 
tine cabinet  is  a  portrait  of  Washington  by  Rembrandt.  The 
plate  was  purchased  from  an  old  Maryland  family. 

In  addition  to  these  are  various  pieces  of  repousse  silver, 
framed  and  hung  on  the  walls ;  also  various  paintings  of 
scenes  in  Italy  and  Norway  ;  also  fruit-pieces,  etc.,  etc. 


THE 


CHINA-ROOM  OF  J.  Y.  L.  PKUYN,  Esq., 

ALBANY,  1ST.  Y. 


C^Q|p^^HE  opportunities  of  Mr.  Pruyn,  while  Minister 
f^u)/*  Plenipotentiary  at  Pekin,  for  collecting  rare 
'fgj^TH^'  specimens  of  Oriental  china  and  lacquers,  were 
of  the  best ;  fortunately  he  had  the  taste  and 
the  purse  which  enabled  him  to  make  good 
use  of  these  opportunities  ;  thus  he  has  beautified  his  house 
and  enriched  his  country  with  a  collection,  which  contains 
not  only  Oriental  chinas,  but  also  those  of  the  best  artists  of 
Europe.  A  portion  of  these  are  arranged  in  a  china-room, 
which  is  here  pictured  and  described. 

"  The  room  is  thirteen  by  eighteen  feet  square.  The  walls 
are  papered  in  white ;  the  floor  is  of  inlaid  woods,  with  a  rug 
from  India,  in  crimson,  with  little  black  devils  strewn  over  it. 
A  large  dark-blue  vase,  made  at  Sevres,  stands  in  the  centre 
of  the  room,  with  an  exotic  plant  growing  in  it. 

The  chimney-piece  is  of  white  marble,  with  crimson  satin 
lambrequins,  held  with  brass  nails,  and  fringed.  On  the  man- 
tel-piece is  an  old  Sevres  clock  in  the  centre,  and  a  pair  of 
Marie  Antoinette  candlesticks,  dark  blue ;  also  a  pair  of  large 
lamps  of  an  Indian  pattern  and  style,  duplicates  of  a  pair 
made  in  Paris  in  1857  for  the  Queen  of  Spain. 


100 


THE  CniNA-ROOM  OF  J.  V.  L.  PRUYN. 


The  fireplace  is  of  tiles,  with  scripture  subjects,  and  a  motto 
around  the  semicircle  :  "  Vanitas  Vanitatum  est  omnia  Vanitas." 
It  contains  a  gas-fire  imitation  of  soft  coal,  and  a  fender  of  tile 
mounted  in  brass.  The  hearth  is  inlaid  with  "  salve  "  bought 
in  Naples  in  1851.  The  chimney  has  a  mirror  with  frame  of 
gilt,  and  around  the  mirror  a  broad  border  of  crimson  velvet 
holding  crimson  velvet  brackets,  on  which  are  placed  small 
specimens  of  porcelain.  There  is  the  same  style  of  decoration 
around  the  doors. 

On  the  east  side  of  the  room  is  a  case  in  wood,  with  glass 
sliding-doors,  kept  always  locked,  the  shelves  and  backs  lined 
with  crimson  velvet,  containing  many  rare  specimens  of  porce- 
lains in  Sevres,  pieces  that  belonged  to  Louis  Philippe,  Marie 
Antoinette,  etc.  ;  Meissen  ;  Japanese  of  various  kinds  ;  old  and 
new  Dresden ;  old  majolica ;  old  delft  and  faience ;  mosaic 
cups  and  saucers  of  Berlin  ware,  once  in  the  collection  of  the 
late  King  of  Holland. 

There  are  two  cases  of  same  style  as  first  mentioned  on  either 
side  of  the  door  to  entry,  but  deeper  and  narrower.  These 
contain  larger  pieces,  such  as  a  water-kettle  of  modern  Dresden, 
part  of  a  duplicate  set  made  for  the  late  Queen  of  Saxony  ;  a 
Sutsuma  vase  ;  various  tall  covered  pots  with  handles,  a  superb 
one  of  LoAvcstoffe  ;  of  Berlin,  India,  Dresden,  etc. ;  various 
bowls  of  Sevres,  of  old  Bristol,  of  green  Indian,  etc.,  and 
many  specimens  of  Crown-derby,  Derby,  Chelsea,  Swansea, 
Leeds,  Staffordshire,  old  and  modern  Wedgewood,  old  and  new 
Delft,  Copenhagen,  French,  Dutch,  Plymouth,  Abruzzi,  Sarona, 
Rouen,  Pinxton,  Furstenburg,  Nancy,  and  modern  English. 
There  are  many  specimens  of  beautifully  decorated  old  Berlin 
and  "  A.  R,"  and  of  Sevres,  Capo  di  Monti,  Palissy,  etc.,  etc. 
Large  oval  and  round  Placques  hang  on  the  walls,  of  Sevres 


THE  CHINA-ROOM  OF  J.   V.  L.  PRUYN. 


101 


delft,  and  of  rare  old  Chinese  and  Japanese.  Many  of  these 
Sevres  specimens  are  from  the  palaces  of  Fontainebleau,  St. 
Cloud,  and  Les  Tuileries." 

The  collection  of  porcelain,  if  not  the  largest  in  the  country, 
is  second  to  none  in  its  rarity  and  value.  It  is  and  has  been 
a  source  of  delight  to  its  owners,  and  is  a  lasting  gratification 
to  their  friends,  and  to  the  lovers  of  household  art  who  have 
had  the  pleasure  of  examining  it. 


THE 


LIBRARY  OF  WILLIAM  CULL  EN  BRYANT, 


BOSLYN, 


what  thev  re.a<» 
always  interest. 


they  live,  where  thev 
nd  what  they  study, 
Ve  r  an  do  no  better 
than  to  print  the  brief  description  of  Bryant's 
library,  at  Roslyn,  Long  Island,  as  written  by 
the  firm  pen  of  our  oldest  and  most  earnest  poet. 

"  The  library  is  easily  described.    It  is  not  a  very  choice 
selection,  either  as  regards'  the  authors  or  the  editions,  but 
thert  are  florae  good  books.    The  collection  of  English  poets 
b*  p«M:fcy  full,  -.ij*  might  be  expected  in  the  library  of  one  who 
• 

tifis*  vet  cannot  mv*  a»  (. 'owner  once  said,  that  he  reads  no  con- 


"A  long  row  of  volumes  with  yellowish  leather  backs,  on 
tb*s  f  ast  wall  of  the  library,  is  the  French  Biographie  Generale. 
."*!«» vc  it  is  Amyot's  Plutarch, — a  much  better  translation  than 
tfn-  English  one  of  Laughorne,  who  has  made  the  old  Greek 
biographer  drawling  and  tedious.'  In  the  same  quarter  are  to 
be  seen  Bayle's  Dictionary  in  the  original  French,  and  several 
of  the  nrincinH  I  German  classics,  —  Goethe,  Schiller,  Lessiug. 


THE 


LIBRARY  OF  WILLIAM  CULLEN  BRYANT, 

ROSLYN,  LONG  ISLAND. 

HE  homes  of  poets,  how  they  live,  where  they 
write,  what  they  read,  and  what  they  study, 
must  always  interest.  We  can  do  no  better 
than  to  print  the  brief  description  of  Bryant's 
library,  at  Roslyn,  Long  Island,  as  written  by 
the  firm  pen  of  our  oldest  and  most  earnest  poet. 

"  The  library  is  easily  described.  It  is  not  a  very  choice 
selection,  either  as  regards  the  authors  or  the  editions,  but 
there  are  some  good  books.  The  collection  of  English  poets 
is  pretty  full,  as  might  be  expected  in  the  library  of  one  who 
himself  is  a  writer  of  verse,  and  who,  though  he  admits  that 
his  love  of  poetry  has  declined  somewhat  with  the  decline  of 
life,  yet  cannot  say,  as  Cowper  once  said,  that  he  reads  no  con- 
temporary poetry. 

"A  long  row  of  volumes  with  yellowish  leather  backs,  on 
the  east  wall  of  the  library,  is  the  French  Biographic  Generate. 
Above  it  is  Amyot's  Plutarch, — a  much  better  translation  than 
the  English  one  of  Langhorne,  who  has  made  the  old  Greek 
biographer  drawling  and  tedious. '  In  the  same  quarter  are  to 
be  seen  Bayle's  Dictionary  in  the  original  French,  and  several 
of  the  principal  German  classics,  —  Goethe,  Schiller,  Lessing, 


104      THE  LIBRARY  OF  WILLIAM  GULLEN  BRYANT. 


Herder,  and  Schlegel,  with  others,  the  lesser  lights  of  German 
literature,  and  a  few  other  books  in  French,  Spanish,  and 
Italian,  principally  the  poets  of  those  languages. 

"  The  proportion  of  biographical  works  is  rather  large.  But 
there  are  many  of  a  miscellaneous  character,  not  perhaps  the 
best  of  their  class,  which  came  into  the  library  through  the 
connection  of  its  owner  with  the  daily  press.  These  are  often 
American  reprints  of  works  produced  in  England,  and  are 
rather  inferior  in  mechanical  execution  to  the  English  copies. 
Of  what  pass  for  the  classics  of  the  English  language,  the  pro- 
portion is  as  great  as  might  be  expected  from  the  tastes  and 
pursuits  of  the  owner ;  but  no  particular  care  has  been  exercised 
in  obtaining  the  best  editions.  The  collection  is  not  without 
its  books  on  religious  subjects,  though  there  are  but  few  of  a 
controversial  nature.  It  includes  also  a  copy  of  a  French  edi- 
tion of  the  Latin  classics.  On  the  whole,  it  is  such  a  collection 
as  one  who  is  fond  of  reading,  with  a  disposition  to  look  into 
many  books  and  thoroughly  to  read  but  few,  might,  without 
taking  any  special  trouble,  get  together,  partly  by  chance  and 
partly  by  choice,  in  the  course  of  a  long  life,  principally  de- 
voted to  literary  pursuits. 

"  The  shelves  of  the  library  are  of  the  wood  of  the  tulip-tree, 
rather  neatly  made  and  varnished.  They  contain  from  three 
to  four  thousand  volumes.  There  is  a  fireplace  in  the  room 
which  was  once  of  the  ample  dimensions  common  a  hundred 
years  ago,  about  the  time  that  the  house  was  built,  but  is  now 
reduced  to  such  dimensions  as  to  receive  a  Franklin  stove  or 
open  iron  fireplace.  This  has  been  surrounded  by  Dutch  tiles 
of  the  ancient  pattern,  representing  events  in  Scripture  history. 
The  room  has  two  bay-windows,  one  on  the  north  side  look- 
ing out  upon  a  cluster  of  huge  pear-trees,  supposed  to  be 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  WILLIAM  CULL  EN  BRYANT.  105 

more  than  a  hundred  years  old,  between  the  trunks  and 
branches  of  which  are  caught  glimpses  of  Hempstead  Harbor 
and  white  gleams  of  the  gliding  sails.  The  other,  on  the  west 
side,  opens  on  a  flower-garden,  beyond  which  is  a  belt  of  trees 
shutting  out  a  view  of  the  water,  on  the  edge  of  which  they 
stand." 


THE 


STUDY,  HARVARD  COLLEGE, 

CAMBRIDGE,  MASS. 

•  ^      M1IS   room  requires   but  a   brief  description. 
lh»^>BmSSy  When  the  present  occupant  took  possession, 
f*        it  was  a  most  commonplace  room,  with  white 
wood-work  and  walls  covered  with  a  gray  felt 
paper.    To  transform  this  into  an  agreeable 
room  at  a  moderate  cost  was  the  problem. 

To  clean  it  thoroughly  was  the  first  task.  The  walls  were 
then  kalsomined  up  to  the  picture-moulding  with  a  light  olive- 
green  color ;  above  this  a  line  of  flowered  paper  was  applied, 
ending  with  a  crimson  band  of  paper  an  inch  wide  at  the  top. 
The  picture-moulding  was  made  a  dark  green.  The  wood-work 
was  then  painted  a  dead  or  flat  black,  with  panels  of  green  like 
the  wall,  relieved  with  crimson  mouldings. 

The  rest  of  the  room  is  furnished  as  for  a  small  library,  with 
writing-table,  bookcases,  and  mantel-piece  in  antique-colored 
ash,  of  simple  and  artistic  forms.  The  special  taste  of  the 
owner  does  all  the  rest,  and  it  is  much.  In  the  panel  of  the 
mantel-piece  is  an  exquisite  proof  of  Alema-Tademas's  picture 
of  the  Procession  of  the  Vine,  and  on  the  walls  are  some  rare 
etchings,  and  other  works  of  art.  The  room  has  proved  to  be 
satisfactory. 


in  any  city.    It  is  some  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet  wide,  and  through  its  centre  runs  a  broad 
strip  of  green  grass,  fringed  with  trees,  which 
yet  small.    The  whole  street  is  a  new  one,  being  one  of 
built  on  land  reclaimed  from  the  water ;  so  that  the 
<  wonr  an  air  of  newness ;  but  withal  they  are  in  good 
uf»d.  ad  a  rule,  without  pretension.    The  house  which 

. 

I  viA*m  in  laid  with  Swiss  parquetry,  in  one  color  of  oak; 
iKcier  the  table  is  spread  a  small  Turkey  carpet,  large 

ft  W±hl&  begin  with  an  oaken  panelled  dado,  four  feet 


4' 


THE 

DINING-ROOM  OF  JAMES  LEE,  JR.,  Esq., 

BOSTON,  MASS. 

fi^Qjjffjjgj^ffEE  finest  street  of  Boston  is  Commonwealth 
Avenue,  and  few  finer  streets  are  to  be  seen 
in  any  city.  It  is  some  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet  wide,  and  through  its  centre  runs  a  broad 
strip  of  green  grass,  fringed  with  trees,  which 
are  as  yet  small.  The  whole  street  is  a  new  one,  being  one  of 
those  built  on  land  reclaimed  from  the  water ;  so  that  the 
houses  wear  an  air  of  newness ;  but  withal  they  are  in  good 
styles,  and,  as  a  rule,  without  pretension.  The  house  which 
contains  this  dining-room  belongs  to  James  Lee,  Jr.,  Esq., 
and  is  built  of  brick,  with  light  sandstone  facings. 

At  the  end  of  the  very  handsome  hall  opens  the  door  of 
the  drawing-room ;  and  to  the  right  of  that  the  dining-room. 
Facing  you  as  you  enter  it  is  a  broad  bay-window,  making  one 
end  of  the  long  room,  some  twenty-five  by  seventeen  feet. 
The  octagon  of  the  bay  is  floored  with  tiles,  which  makes  a 
place  for  a  small  winter  garden. 

The  FLOOR  is  laid  with  Swiss  parquetry,  in  one  color  of  oak ; 
and  under  the  table  is  spread  a  small  Turkey  carpet,  large 
enough  to  hold  the  table  and  chairs. 

The  walls  begin  with  an  oaken  panelled  dado,  four  feet 


110 


THE  DINING  ROOM  OF  JAMES  LEE,  J  11. 


high.  This  dado  is  engraved  with  rosettes  and  some  lines  and 
chamfers,  which  are  touched  with  dull  red  and  black.  Above 
the  dado,  extending  to  within  two  feet  of  the  ceiling,  is  a 
Pompeian  red  in  flat  color,  with  an  illuminated  border  at  top 
and  bottom  ;  gay,  but  not  too  gay.  At  the  top  of  this  is  a 
picture-moulding  of  oak  ;  and  above  that  is  a  broad  band  of 
yellowish  green,  with  narrower  stripes  of  green,  etc.,  at  the 
base  and  top. 

The  CEILING  is  of  oak,  panelled  and  bracketed,  the  chamfers 
and  lines  of  which  are  touched  with  red,  green,  and  black  ; 
altogether  this  ceiling  is  a  success,  though  a  little  less  color 
would  be  preferred  by  some.  It  is  easier  for  a  man  of  courage 
to  overdo  than  to  fail  to  do. 

The  sideboard,  which  is  in  the  recess  opposite  the  bay- 
window,  is  the  principal  feature  of  the  room,  as  it  should  be, 
and  is  in  excellent  taste ;  it  is  roomy,  stately,  and  not  over- 
ornamented.  Good  brasses  decorate  the  doors,  and  the  shelves 
above  the  table  give  excellent  positions  for  some  good  china, 
silver,  and  brass  dishes.  The  dining-room  should  be  gay  and 
cheerful,  and  nothing  diffuses  these  charming  effects  more 
than  the  fine  colors  of  china  and  the  brilliancy  of  silver  or 
brass  dishes. 

The  table  is  massive  oak,  some  four  feet  six  inches  by 

seven  feet  six  inches,  and  is  not  an  extension.    Two  side-tables, 

about  twenty  inches  wide,  may  be  used  at  either  end,  to  extend 

it  if  wanted.    This  style  of  dining-table  cannot  be  too  highly 

commended.    All  tendency  towards  rattle-trap,  all  possibility 

of  it,  is  escaped,  which  cannot  be  said  of  the  pillar  extension 

tables,  even  when  made  in  the  most  careful  manner,  as  they 

almost  never  are. 

The  CHAIRS  have  the  great  merit   of  beino;  most  com- 
es o 


THE  DINING-ROOM  OF  JAMES  LEE,  JR. 


Ill 


fortable,  and  one  certainly  can  sit  long  at  the  feast ;  whatever 
dyspepsia  may  come  of  that,  who  knows  ?  They  are  made 
after  an  English  model  of  mediaeval  design.  I  do  not  seek  to 
criticise  a  good  piece  of  work,  but  it  can  do  no  harm  to  say 
that  to  my  eye  they  are  too  heavy,  and  I  fancy  they  would  be 
so  to  the  delicate  hand  of  "  lovely  woman."  But  better  a  heavy 
chair  than  a  heavy  feast  or  a  dull  wit,  which  we  do  not  believe 
ever  go  with  these. 

The  chandeliers  and  side-lights  are  in  exquisite  taste,  as  our 
artist  has  only  been  able  to  indicate. 

To  those  who  admire  the  light  color  of  the  oak  in  a  state 
of  nature,  this  room  is  a  most  excellent  illustration  of  good 
work  and  good  taste. 


THE 

DRAWING-ROOM  OF  PROF.  F.  ROGERS, 

NEWPORT,  R.  L 


THE 


LIBRARY  OF  JOHN  A.  BURNHAM,  JR.,  Esq., 

BOSTON,  MASS. 

IIS  room  looks  out  upon  the  fine  wide  street, 
snatched  from  the  sea,  named  Commonwealth 
Avenue.     The  room   is  some  seventeen  by 
twenty-five  feet  in  size,  looking  upon  the  street 
through  a  broad  bay. 
The  floor,  of  pine,  is  colored,  and  coated  with  shellac,  over 
which  is  spread  a  rich  Indian  carpet  of  red,  green,  and  white, 
imported  for  this  purpose. 

The  library-TxVBLE,  standing  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  is 
furnished  with  drawers  to  the  floor,  the  corners  being  pro- 
tected and  ornamented  with  turned  and  carved  posts.  This,  as 
well  as  the  rest  of  the  furniture,  is  of  black-walnut,  carefully 
polished. 

The  hooded  mantel-piece  is  an  effective  piece  of  work; 
upon  the  bracket  of  its  roof  stands  an  eagle  owl ;  below  him 
is  this  motto,  cut  in  crimson,  "  A  GOOD  fire,  good  friends, 
GOOD  BOOKS."  A  superb  bronze  figure  of  M  ephistopheles 
stands  by  the  clock,  which,  with  two  Sevres  vases,  furnishes 
the  shelf.  Around  the  open  fire  space  are  cavaliers  and  horse- 
man tiles  in  sepia. 


116  THE  LIBRARY  OF  JO  BUST  A.  BURNHAM,  JR. 


The  BOOKCASES,  four  in  number,  flank  the  sides  of  the 
mantel-piece,  and  the  spaces  opposite ;  they  are  ample  and 
stately.  In  the  top  can  be  seen  small  lockers,  ornamented  with 
brasses.  A  very  decorative  feature  of  these  bookcases  is  the 
curtains,  hanging  upon  brass  rods.  They  are  of  celadon- 
green  silk,  bordered  with  crimson. 

The  walls  are  finished  with  broad  crimson  bands  at  base  and 
top ;  the  space  between  being  covered  with  a  neutral  green 
paper,  figured  with  delicate  brown.  The  timbered  ceiling  is 
of  black-walnut,  the  panels  being  colored  with  a  light  yellow, 
toned  with  green. 

The  chandelier  and  two  bracket-lights  arc  of  steel-colored 
brass,  relieved  and  brightened  with  touches  of  the  yellow  metal. 
In  the  bay  lies  a  large  bear-skin  rug. 

The  bay-window  is  filled  with  seats ;  the  curtains  across 
the  wide  opening  are  of  heavy  woollen  tapestry,  with  a  crim- 
son ground  covered  with  pomegranates  in  green,  blue,  and 
brown.  The  portiere  across  the  double  door  which  leads  into 
the  drawing-room  is  of  the  same  material,  which  also  covers 
the  chairs  and  sofa.  It  is  a  satisfactory  whole ;  few  rooms 
are  as  perfect  in  harmony. 


I 


THE 

DINING-ROOM  OF  JOHN  A.  BUENHAM,  Jr., 

BOSTON,  MASS. 

jjj^|SHIS  room  opens  from  the  long  hall,  and  is 
ifSh  some  eighteen  by  twenty-four  feet  in  size.  The 
~p  carpet  covering  the  whole  floor  is  of  a  small 
yrC  figure  in  dull  greens,  browns,  and  reds,  —  in 
harmony  with  all  the  rest,  and  not  obtrusive. 
The  DUSTING-TABLE  in  style  may  be  termed  domestic 
Gothic ;  not  Eastlake,  a  most  vague  and  badly  used  term. 
The  CHAIRS,  designed  specially  for  the  room,  are  covered  with 
crimson  leather ;  they  are  easy  and  stately.  In  the  cross-rail 
of  the  top  of  the  back  are  inlaid  three  agates,  of  various 
colors. 

The  sideboard  and  mantel-piece  are  in  harmony.  The  lat- 
ter is  massive  and  quiet.  The  central  panel  holds  a  mirror. 
Upon  the  broad  overhanging  upper  shelf  stand  two  tall  can- 
delabra, and  a  great  Moorish  vase,  gay  with  color ;  upon  the 
lower  or  mantel-shelf  are  a  clock  and  vases. 

The  Sideboard  is  finished  with  brass  hinges  and  handles, 
and  the  upper  shelves  are  decorated  with  china  and  silver, 
giving  brightness  and  life  to  the  room. 

All  the  furniture  of  the  room,  and  the  panelling,  arc  of 


118      THE  DINING-R003I  OF  JOHN  A.  BURNHAM,  JR. 


American  ash,  tinted  with  a  dark  stain,  which  gives  great  effect 
to  the  grain  and  the  character  of  the  wood. 

As  the  aspect  of  this  room  is  to  the  north,  the  WALLS  are 
tinted  with  a  warm  yellow,  subdued  with  a  dash  of  green. 
The  cornice  is  a  broad  band  of  rosy  color,  above  and  below 
which  are  mouldings  of  green. 

The  CEILING  is  a  cool  Q'rav,  from  the  centre  of  which  haners 
a  brass  chandelier. 

The  curtains  draw  with  brass  rings  on  wooden  poles,  and 
are  not  looped  up.  They  are  of  raw  silk  in  green,  yellow,  and 
red,  finished  with  broad  bands  of  crimson  and  green. 


THE 


DINING-ROOM  OF  GEORGE  JAMES,  Esq., 

MHANT,  MASS. 

iESTING  upon  one  of  the  most  picturesque  head- 
lands of  the  New  England  coast,  at  Nahant,  is 
the  house  of  George  James,  Esq.  It  would  be 
difficult  to  find  a  more  effective,  ample,  and 
delightful  house  than  this,  which  has  been  built 
within  the  last  three  years,  and  is  not  yet  completed.  It  is 
of  stone,  with  brick  facings  and  arches,  and  has  broad,  bold 
piazzas. 

It  is  of  the  dining-room  only  that  we  have  here  to  speak. 
This  is  on  the  southern  side  of  the  house ;  the  windows  look 
out,  through  a  break  or  depression  in  the  rocky  coast,  upon  the 
Atlantic  waters,  and  across  a  fine  bit  of  green  lawn.  A  few 
years  ago  it  was  supposed  that  trees  might  struggle  for  life,  but 
could  not  grow,  and  that  delicate  vegetation  must  perish  in 
this  briny  air.  But  the  last  few  years  have  disproved  this,  and 
we  find  ribbon  borders,  banks  of  flowers,  and  fine  trees  grow- 
ing satisfactorily  on  the  very  line  where  the  spray  dashes  after 
an  ocean  gale. 

Opening  with  broad  doors  from  a  spacious  hall,  the  dining- 
room  is  seen,  some  seventeen  by  twenty-seven  feet  in  size. 
The  style  of  finish  may  be  classed  as  the  domestic  Gothic, 


120 


THE  DINING-ROOM  OF  GEORGE  JAMES. 


which  is  susceptible  to  such  infinite  variety,  and  in  the  hands 
of  an  artist  can  so  well  be  made  to  express  "  use  and  beauty." 

The  floors  are  of  pine,  finished  with  a  slight  dash  of  sepia 
color,  and  waxed.  In  the  centre  is  a  carpet  of  Persian  design, 
well  covered,  the  prevailing  tints  being  blues,  grays,  and 
browns. 

The  sideboard  and  mantel-piece  are  the  two  striking  features 
of  the  room,  as  will  be  seen  by  referring  to  the  accompanying 
sketch.  The  sideboard  is  tall,  stately,  harmonious  ;  the  size, 
some  eight  by  ten  feet,  is  lightened  and  relieved  by  lockers, 
protected  by  brass  grilles  ;  the  top  shelves  are  made  interest- 
ing with  pots  and  dishes  and  jugs. 

The  mantel-piece  enshrines  the  fireplace,  which  is  not  for 
show,  but,  furnished  with  its  brass  dogs  holding  good  store  of 
logs,  does  its  work  by  sending  up  to  heaven  burnt  offerings  to 
the  deity  of  the  home.  In  the  central  panel  is  seen  a  great  dish 
from  the  art  pottery  of  Minton,  with  a  citron-yellow  ground, 
upon  which  are  brilliantly  colored  birds.  On  either  side  stand 
two  grand  bronze  bulls;  after  Itosa  Bonheur ;  two  delicate 
Sevres  vases  are  near  the  top,  —  too  far  from  the  eye  for  such 
delicate  work  to  be  fully  appreciated. 

The  furniture  and  the  woodwork  are  of  our  good  ash,  all  fin- 
ished in  the  light,  and  simply  filled  and  oiled  ;  this  light  wood 
makes  a  bright,  cheerful  room,  which  to  many  persons  more 
than  compensates  for  a  certain  weakness  or  want  of  color ; 
time,  however,  is  expected  to  add  this  richness. 

With  our  fine  woods  (and  ash  is  one  of  the  best)  we  are 
able  to  secure  the  satisfactory  effects  we  see  when  we  compare 
a  room  like  this  to  one  where  the  wood  is  covered  with  paint, 
hiding  whatever  beauty  it  has. 

A  true  and  delicate  sense  of  color  has  secured  both  harmony 


i 


THE  DINING  ROOM  OF  GEORGE  JAMES. 


121 


and  brilliancy  in  the  tints  of  the  walls,  cornices,  and  ceiling. 
The  wall  itself  is  a  flat  tint,  of  a  brownish  gray ;  the  ceilings 
much  lighter ;  on  the  lines  of  the  cornices  and  above  the  dado 
are  narrow  but  strong  bands  of  red,  brown,  and  blue.  Great 
spaces  of  strong  color  are  dangerous,  but  laid  on  in  this  way 
all  dulness  and  commonness  is  banished.  This  fine  room  is 
the  very  reverse  of  the  dull  and  common. 

The  windows  are  draped  with  Moorish  curtains  hung  on 
brass  rods ;  and  these  windows  rival  the  attractions  within, 
presenting,  as  they  do,  most  delightful  views  of  the  wonderful 
and  varying  sea. 

Criticism  would  be  out  of  place  in  the  presence  of  this  fine 
work,  which  is  a  satisfaction  to  us  on-lookers,  and  a  credit  to 
the  artists  and  the  master. 


♦ 


THE 

HALL  OF  CHARLES  S.  SARGENT,  Esq., 

BROOKLIjSTE,  mass. 


THE 

DINING-ROOM  OF  C.  A.  CUMMINGS,  Esq., 

BOSTON,  MASS. 


THE 


DINING-ROOM  OF  GEO.  W.  WALES,  Esq., 

BOSTON,  MASS. 

BROAD,  deep  bay-window  opens  to  the  north, 
through  which  we  see  the  waters  of  the  Back 
Bay,  and  through  which  comes  a  flood  of  light. 
99E  ^ne  room  is  some  twenty  by  twenty-five  feet 
in  size.  The  wood-work  is  of  oak,  as  are  the 
various  pieces  of  furniture.  Next  to  the  table,  always  impor- 
tant in  a  dining-room,  is  a  plate-cupboard,  or  what  was  once 
called  the  "  dressoir,"  through  the  glass  doors  of  which  the 
shining  silver  reflects  the  light. 

The  colors  of  the  room  are  crimson  and  green  ;  the  wall 
being  covered  with  crimson,  which  makes  a  good  background 
for  the  many  pieces  of  porcelain  which  hang  there.  We 
have  made  a  sketch  of  this  room  mainly  to  show  in  some 
slight  degree  the  fine  effect  of  these,  though  it  is  impossible 
to  give  without  color  the  best  results.  With  the  exception  of 
a  few  pictures,  almost  lost  among  them,  the  walls  are  occu- 
pied with  fine  examples  of  Chinese  and  Japanese  porcelain, 
and  a  few  pieces  of  European  work,  and  some  delft  plates. 
Mr.  Wales's  collection  of  china  is  known  as  the  largest  and 
best  in  Boston,  and  the  method  he  has  adopted  of  hanging 
some  small  part  of  it  is  most  brilliant  and  effective. 


128         THE  DINING-ROOM  OF  GEORGE  W.  WALES. 

We  direct  attention  to  this,  because  so  many  people  have  a 
few  fine  old  china  dishes,  and  so  few  know  how  to  use  them  so 
as  to  give  most  pleasure  to  themselves  and  their  friends.  A 
fine  bit  of  china  upon  the  wall  is  more  attractive  and  gay  than 
most  pictures. 

In  this  room  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wales  may  be  said  to  have  been 
their  own  artists. 


THE 


HALL  OF  FRANCIS  PEABODY,  Esq., 

DA1STYERS,  MASS. 

IE  house  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Francis 
Peabody,  Esq.,  known  as  "  General  Gage's 
Headquarters,"  is  situated  in  Danvers,  Mass. 
(formerly  Salem  Village),  and  was  built  in 
1754  by  Mr.  Robert  Hooper  (of  Marblehead) , 
usually  called  at  that  time  "  King  Hooper." 

"  Thomas  Gage,  the  royal  governor  of  Massachusetts,  find- 
ing his  residence  in  Boston  unpleasant,  removed  to  Danvers, 
and  took  up  his  residence  in  this  house,  June  5,  1774.  He 
was  accompanied  by  a  part  of  the  64th  Regiment  of  Royal 
Troops,  who  were  encamped  in  the  adjoining  fields." 

The  architectural  proportions  and  details  of  the  house  are 
very  fine ;  and  as  great  care  has  been  taken  in  their  preserva- 
tion, the  general  condition  of  the  whole  establishment  is  as 
perfect  as  when  originally  built. 

It  is  one  of  the  best  examples  of  the  best  style  of  house 
built  in  New  England  in  the  last  century  of  the  colonial 
period. 

A  peculiarity  of  the  rooms  on  the  lower  floor  is  that  the 
inside  partitions  are  panelled  to  the  ceiling  ;  the  outside  walls 
being  finished  with  plaster. 


130 


THE  HALL  OF  FRANCIS  PEABODY. 


The  hall  we  have  attempted  to  picture  is  ample,  extending 
through  the  house,  and  is  some  twelve  by  fifty  feet  in  size. 
We  show  a  little  of  the  balusters  of  the  staircase,  which  are 
delicately  twisted.  The  panelling  rises  some  four  feet  from 
the  floor,  above  which  is  one  of  those  brilliant  landscape 
papers  in  fashion  a  century  ago.  -This  gives  a  gay  tone  to  the 
whole  house,  and  cannot  fail  to  impress  whoever  enters  it. 

Something  about  such  a  hall  as  this  speaks  of  hospitality, 
which  I  believe  is  not  unknown  to  it ;  it  is  roomy,  receptive, 
and  cheery. 

A  few  antique  chairs  and  cabinets  are  in  keeping  with  the 
hall,  and  a  great  head  of  spreading  antlers  recalls  those  "  good 
old  times "  when  every  man  hunted  his  venison  in  the  mys- 
terious forests ;  strongly  in  contrast  with  these  good  new  times, 
when  men  slaughter  their  bulls  or  bears  in  State  or  Wall 
Street. 


THE    MEMOEIAL  HALL, 

CAMBRIDGE,  MASS. 

IVE  hundred  young  men,  full  of  hope  and  of 
health  we  trust,  seated  at  dinner  in  such  a  fine 
hall  as  this,  is  a  sight  worth  seeing.  How  to 
get  the  body  fed  is  as  important,  and,  we  con- 
clude, almost  as  difficult,  as  to  cater  for  the  mind. 
This  great  dining-room,  the  finest  probably  in  the  country, 
is  thus  described  in  the  Sketch-Book  for  July,  1874  :  — 

"  Of  the  three  portions  which  compose  this  building,  two  — 
the  Dining  Hall  and  the  Memorial  Vestibule — are  finished, 
and  were  dedicated  with  appropriate  ceremonies  on  the  23d 
of  June.  The  Dining  Hall  was  furnished  with  chairs  and 
benches,  and  accommodated  about  twenty-three  hundred 
persons.  On  the  next  day  nearly  twelve  hundred  persons 
sat  down  to  the  Commencement  dinner.  It  is  one  hundred 
and  sixty-four  feet  long,  fifty-nine  feet  wide,  and  seventy- 
five  feet  high  to  the  point  of  the  roof,  which  is  supported 
on  hammer-beam  trusses  of  Southern  pine.  The  walls  above, 
below,  and  between  the  windows  are  of  face  brick,  with  two 
bands  of  buff  tiles  decorated  in  black  and  red.  Below  they 
are  sheathed  with  brown  ash  to  a  height  of  twenty  feet,  of 
which  the  lower  five  or  six  are  taken  up  with  a  panelled  dado. 


132 


THE  MEMORIAL  HALL. 


Upon  the  plain  surface  above  are  hung  the  College  pictures, 
with  marble  busts  standing  upon  brackets  under  the  trusses. 
At  either  end  of  the  hall  is  a  gallery.  The  window  over  the 
western  gallery  is  twenty-five  feet  wide  by  thirty  high,  and  is 
filled  with  stained  glass. 

•  •  •  •  • 

"  The  whole  cost  of  these  portions  of  the  building,  work  on 
which  was  begun  in  the  spring  of  1870,  has  been  about  two 
hundred  and  ninety  thousand  dollars,  all  of  which  has  been 
raised  by  subscription  among  the  friends  and  graduates  of  the 
College." 

It  may  be  of  interest  to  state  how  this  fine  building  was 
originated,  and  how  it  has  been  built.  It  appears  that  after 
our  lamentable  war,  in  the  month  of  May,  1866,  a  numerous 
assembly  of  graduates  met  to  consider  the  matter  of  a  "  Memo- 
rial Hall,"  which  should  combine  three  things  :  — 

"  The  first  —  that  lying  deepest  in  the  hearts  of  all  —  is  the 
irrepressible  desire  of  a  suitable  monument  in  commemoration 
of  the  sons  of  Harvard  who  perilled  and  laid  down  their  lives 
to  preserve  us  as  a  nation,  and  in  defence  of  all  that  makes 
our  country  dear  to  us. 

"  The  second,  is  that  of  a  hall  in  which  to  hold  the  meet- 
ings of  the  Alumni,  and  for  their  festal  entertainments  on  the 
various  occasions  on  which  these  are  held. 

"  The  third  necessity,  —  a  necessity  certainly  no  less  impera- 
tive, and  one  from  which  no  escape  is  perceived  but  by  the  aid 
of  contributions  for  the  purpose,  —  is  that  of  a  theatre  for  the 
celebration  of  the  literary  festivals  of  the  College  and  its 

affiliated  institutions." 

A  most  efficient  committee  of  fifty  was  appointed,  who  pro- 
ceeded vigorously  with  the  work,  and  spared  neither  labor, 


THE  ME 31 ORIAL  HALL.  133 

pains,  nor  skill,  until  the  fine  structure,  nearly  completed,  now 
stands  near  the  buildings  of  old  Harvard. 

This  Dining  Hall  is  the  largest  or  western  portion  of  the  pile. 

Whether  it  was  intended  in  the  first  plans  to  use  this  as  a 
"  commons,"  or  students'  dining-hall,  is  not  certain ;  but  it  is 
so  appropriate,  that  it  would  seem  to  be  inevitable,  if  the 
managers  of  the  College  are  to  attempt  a  commons  at  all. 

It  appears  from  the  great  "  Harvard  Book,"  recently  pub- 
lished, that  the  common  dining-room  was  an  institution  from 
the  very  founding  of  the  College,  and  at  that  day  it  was  prob- 
ably indispensable  ;  but  it  also  appears  to  have  been  the  fruit- 
ful cause  of  dissatisfaction  and  confusion,  sometimes  culminat- 
ing in  "  rows,"  which  often  led  to  punishments  and  expulsions. 
One  of  the  punishments  mentioned  (1674)  is  that  of  being 
obliged  to  sit  uncovered  at  the  meal ;  the  inference  being  that 
the  "  good  "  fellows  ate  with  their  hats  on. 

In  the  1600's  *  the  meals  appear  to  have  been  breakfast, 
morning  bever  (or  lunch),  dinner,  afternoon  bever,  supper. 
Beer  and  cider  were  among  the  beverages,  and  in  1715  the 
butler  was  forbidden  to  sell  his  cider  at  over  two-pence  a  quart. 
In  1734  pewter  plates  were  bought  at  the  cost  of  the  College; 
and  it  would  seem  that  before  this,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree, 
each  man  supplied  his  own  plate. 

In  1757  it  was  ordered  that  pudding  should  be  given  three 
times  a  week,  but  the  meat  be  lessened  on  those  days. 

In  1766  a  "rebellion"  broke  out  because  the  butter  was  so  vile 
that  no  respectable  wagoner  would  desire  it  for  wheel-grease. 
During  the  Revolutionary  War  the  rule  providing  "  chocolate, 
tea,  coffee,  and  milk  "  for  breakfast  was  suspended,  because  of 
the  cost  of  the  three  first.  Those  who  wished  those  drinks 
were  to  pay  extra  for  them. 

*  Seventeenth  century. 


134  THE  MEMORIAL  HALL. 

In  1807  it  was  obligatory  upon  the  professors,  as  well  as  the 
students  rooming  in  the  College  buildings,  to  eat  at  com- 
mons. It  was  hoped  in  this  way  to  change  the  dining-room 
from  a  sort  of  bear-pit  to  a  Valhalla,  but  it  did  not  wholly  suc- 
ceed. The  struggle  to  harmonize  conflicting  interests  went  on 
till  1848,  when  commons  were  abolished. 

It  appears  that  the  cost  of  living  at  commons,  of  Thomas 
Graves,  in  1654  -5,  was  8  31.50  per  year.  In  1805  it  cost  per 
week,  8  2.24;  in  1833,  81.90;  in  1836,  8  2.25;  in  1848,  82 
and  8  2.50,  there  being  a  cheap  table  and  an  "  aristocratic " 
one  ;  to-day  it  costs  8  4.50. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  Colony  it  was  greatly  desired  to 
educate  a  body  of  men  who  should  become  clergymen,  then 
the  most  important  calling  in  the  community.  Many  of  the 
applicants  were  poor,  and  everything  was  done  to  secure  free 
tuition  and,  as  nearly  as  possible,  free  food.  How,  therefore,  to 
get  food,  and  good  food,  enough  for  a  growing  man  at  the 
smallest  charge,  was  the  problem.  It  too  often  became  a 
choice  of  evils,  —  either  to  deplete  the  purse  or  to  pinch  the 
belly  ;  both  were  disagreeable.  To-day,  when  poor  clergymen 
are  not  much  sought  for,  the  question  arises,  why  should  a 
college  student  have  his  education  free,  or  partly  free  ;  why 
should  he  have  his  dinner  or  his  dining-room  free,  or  partly 
free? 

At  this  moment  more  men  who  can  afford  to  pay  a  fair  price 
for  their  tuition  and  food  than  the  colleges  can  accommodate 
are  seeking  admission. 

Therefore,  has  not  the  condition  of  things  changed,  so  that 
the  educated  classes  are  able  and  willing  to  pay  fairly  for  what 
they  get,  and  no  longer  wish  the  contributions  of  the  charita- 
ble to  aid  them  %    So  many  demands  are  now  made  upon  the 


THE  MEMORIAL  HALL. 


135 


generous  purse,  that  we  may  begin  to  answer  these  questions  to 
the  public  advantage. 

A  visit  to  this  fine  timbered  hall  will  repay  the  trouble.  It 
is  pleasant  to  praise,  and  to  some  it  is  pleasanter  to  find  fault. 
Few  pieces  of  work  are  better  conceived  or  better  carried  out 
than  this,  and  we  are  grateful  for  it.  What  we  much  desire 
is  that  the  chandeliers  were  more  worthy  the  room. 

The  great  west  window  is  filled  with  richly  colored  glass, 
which  makes  the  pale  side  windows  seem  poor  and  starved. 
With  more  money  we  may  expect  more  color.  Sixty-two  por- 
traits and  sixteen  busts  look  down  upon  the  living  young  men 
with  steady  eyes,  and  we  trust  the  fine  souls  of  the  departed 
shed  down  upon  them  their  good  influences. 

Among  the  painters  we  read  the  names  of  Copley,  and 
Stuart,  and  Smibert,  and  Newton ;  of  the  sculptors,  Houdon, 
Powers,  Crawford,  Story,  etc. 

It  is  a  matter  of  regret  that  we  could  not  have  made  a  pic- 
ture of  the  room  with  the  tables  surrounded  by  the  men  who 
are  coming  forward  to  do  the  world's  work,  and  better,  we 
hope,  than  it  has  been  done.  But  it  was  impossible  to  make 
such  a  picture. 


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